Rent a Boyfriend!
by XeroLimits
Summary: When Ino, Hinata, Temari, Tenten and Sakura all mess around on a 'Rent a Boyfriend' site, nobody expected that one of them would actually end up doing it! Main pairing: SasuSaku! Slight Plot. Slight side pairings. AU. Please R&R!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** Hey all! This is just a random idea I had for a SasuSaku fanfic. I'm thinking of including other couples later on in the story. I'm keeping it T for now, although I don't know if I'll want to change it to rated M for later chapters. This fanfiction does follow a simple plot.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

* * *

"So why did you invite us all over again?" Temari asked with a bored expression on her face.

All the girls were currently gathered in Ino's dorm, staring intently at the blonde as she got up from her bed, walking over to her cluttered desk. "I'm so glad you asked," she said, sending a sly smile in their general direction.

Tenten, Temari, Hinata and Sakura (Ino's best friend) were all having a sleepover in Ino's dorm. It was a Friday evening and the girls were each dressed in their pyjamas. They were in the final semester of their first year of college, except for Temari, who was already in her third.

Ino and Sakura had known each other since second grade and they'd decided to attend the same college because of how close they were. The two of them had met Hinata and Tenten right at the start of the year and the four of them immediately got along.

Only during the second semester, however, did they meet Temari. She was picking on them one day when the four of them had decided to join the school's swimming team. Temari was the swimming team's captain and she was very intolerant with the "lack of skills" that the group of friends seemed to possess.

After that, Sakura, Ino and Hinata had decided to quit the team. Tenten, however, being the athletic person that she was, decided to stay on the team and had improved so well in her swimming, that she was almost as good as Temari! The two of them even eventually became friends, which meant that Temari was also the others' friend too.

Ino carefully picked up her laptop, before making her way back to the bed and sitting down. "There's something I really want to show you guys," she said, logging in. "Come take a look."

Hinata, Tenten, Temari and Sakura all scooted over to Ino, looking over her shoulder as she began to type an address in the URL.

The page took only a brief moment to load, showing a brightly designed home page.

"What is this?!" Tenten chuckled as the others glanced at the top of the page. ' _RENT A BOYFRIEND!'_ was written in beautiful pink, cursive text. Beneath it were tonnes of images of hot and sexy boys, ready to be rented and played with for a day.

Hinata began to blush as she realized how many men on the screen weren't wearing shirts.

Sakura gaped at her friend, "What were you doing yesterday?!" she asked as a huge smile played at her lips. "How did you find this?!"

"Are you trying to find a boyfriend?" Temari asked the blonde, raising a sceptical brow at her friend.

"No ways!" Ino laughed. "I just thought I _had_ to show you guys! Can you believe a site like this exists?! It's like a place where you can buy a one-night-stand!"

The other girls laughed along with their blonde friend.

"Let's totally browse!" Sakura suggested as she crossed her legs and Ino handed her the laptop.

Ino, Tenten, Hinata and Temari moved over to Sakura to see what she was doing.

"What do you guys want to do on here first?" the pink-haired girl asked, glancing at her friends.

"Let's see what happens when you select the ' _Boys for Rent'_ icon," Tenten suggested, pointing at the screen. Sakura chuckled as she did what Tenten had suggested.

A pop-up blocked out the middle of the screen. The text read in cute pink letters;

 _'Hi there! So you're thinking of renting a boyfriend! Maybe we can help you out!'_

The box underneath the text displayed filters which could help you narrow down your search. "Okay!" Ino said, a little too eagerly, "Let's tick some boxes!"

The first thing they had to do was choose their location. "Tokyo," Ino said, typing over Sakura.

"Age? How old should he be?" Sakura asked.

"Let's pick from 19 to 21," Tenten offered.

"Alright," Sakura agreed as she typed in the age range.

Next, was a box asking for the searcher's gender, where Sakura selected the ' _female_ ,' option.

"Wow!" Ino sounded impressed, "they even cater for gays!"

"That's convenient," Hinata nodded, smiling.

"This is the weirdest site ever," Tenten muttered under her breath, earning a smile from Ino.

The next box asked what type of guy was being searched for. There were options like caring, charismatic, charming, flirtatious, funny, quiet, sexy, etc. all in alphabetical order. There was also an _'other'_ option, where you could type traits of your own choice. There was also an _'all'_ option for anyone who didn't mind what type of guy they chose.

"Wow!" Ino laughed, "They have a guy on here for _everyone!"_ Ino's comment led all the other girls to giggle and snicker.

"That's so true!" Temari agreed, smiling brightly. "They even have an option that says clumsy! And possessive! Wow!"

"And arrogant," Hinata added, pointing at the option. The other girls laughed.

"Who'd want an arrogant guy for a boyfriend?!" Temari wondered out loud between bursts of giggles.

"Some people find arrogant guys sexy!" Tenten said, defensively.

The other girls instantly turned towards the girl who'd just spoken, gaping.

"What? Do _you_?" Temari asked, looking surprised.

Ino raised a perfectly plucked eyebrow when Tenten began to blush slightly as she stuttered out, "N-no! No ways!"

Sakura gasped, "Don't tell me you like Sasuke!?" He was the only arrogant person she could think of.

Ino gaped at Tenten, "No way! He's like the most arrogant guy I know!"

Tenten folded her arms across her chest, "No ways, guys! Why would I ever like _him_?!"

Temari looked playfully at the brunette, "Then who is it, Tenten?" she smirked.

At this, Tenten's cheeks took on another shade of light pink, "No-one! Let's just leave it, okay?"

"Whatever you say," Ino smiled at Tenten with a playful wink, which only earned her a punch in the arm. "Ouch!" the blonde laughed as she saw Tenten roll her eyes.

"Whatever," the brunette grinned at her.

"Come on," Hinata giggled, "Let's continue with the filtering."

Sakura looked sneakily at the lavender-eyed girl. "Someone's eager to get a boyfriend!" she teased.

Hinata only blushed and said weakly, "T-that's not true."

"I was joking," Sakura poked the Hyuuga on the shoulder. "Let's see," she said, turning back to the screen, "Let's select 'all'."

"Yeah," Temari agreed. "What's next?"

"Now we have to select a reason why we want him," Sakura stated. Reading through the options, the girls began to giggle. There were options like, one-night-stand, a dance-partner for a social gathering, a butler/bartender/waiter/bouncer, stripper, participant of a threesome(+), boyfriend, kid's party games host, fake father, high school prom crush, to find the one you love, etc. there was also the option for 'other'.

"I can't believe guys would rent themselves out for any of this stuff!" Sakura laughed. "Let's just go with 'all'."

"Or just type 'someone to date,'" Ino suggested. "Because we don't really want to have a one-night-stand with these guys." She smiled.

Sakura nodded, typing, _'someone to date,'_ in the _'other'_ box. "Okay last one. Charge. What do they mean by charge?"

"I think it means how much he will charge for renting out his body…?" Ino suggested.

"Why?!" Temari gasped, "I wouldn't pay to rent a boyfriend!"

Ino laughed, "Even prostitutes charge! This is like an online gigolo or prostitute house!"

"Good point," Sakura laughed.

"Okay then," Temari said, "let's say we're willing to pay anything. I mean it's not like we're _actually_ going to date any of these guys."

The girls laughed and Sakura selected the ' _anything'_ icon and then the ' _next'_ button.

Immediately, a new page loaded, and a bunch of pictures of men of all kinds littered the page.

"Click on that one!" Temari excitedly commanded as she pointed to a barely-dressed man with a six-pack. Sakura selected the image and the page loaded, showing an enlarged picture of him, with an information box beside it. In the box were things like his name, his birthdate, his age, his location and his likes and dislikes. Underneath the image was a short description of his personality and positive achievements and such.

"He sounds like a show-off," Tenten stated bluntly.

Hinata nodded in agreement as she read on about how amazing he was at soccer, basketball, swimming and volleyball. The text also boasted about how well-known his family name was and that he'd won many medals in the past. _Apparently_ he'd been asked countless times to join the Olympics (which he'd coincidently turned down). It also said he was very good with women.

"Please scroll down," Hinata asked Sakura.

The pinkette nodded and scrolled, showing more of the page. Right underneath the passage was a series of little tick-boxes, where the man had ticked off what he was willing to rent himself out for. He had ticked off the following boxes: sex, stripper, drinking, etc. And he had left the others blank, which read: dating, mild partying, and such.

"I think the things he ticked off are the things he would allow." Ino stated as she read through the list of tick boxes.

"Hm?" Hinata tilted her head to the side, not entirely sure what her friend meant.

"Like I think that because he ticked off sex, that's how far he's willing to go with whomever rents him for that day. See, he didn't tick dating, so he's obviously not looking for a relationship."

Sakura nodded, turning her attention back to the screen and scrolled down some more. Underneath the boxes were all the comments and the rating for the man. Apparently, out of all the 846 people who rented him, 845 gave him a _like._

"I wonder what he did to deserve a dislike…" Ino stated out loud. The others nodded as they read the comments. There were things like, _"Amazing! Brilliant in bed!"_ and _"I recommend!"_

"Eew!" Tenten glared at the screen. "So this means he had sex with all 846 women who rented him!?"

The others all laughed. "I don't think I'd ever rent him after knowing _that_!" Tenten crossed her arms over her chest. "What a player."

By now, it was nearing midnight, however, neither of the girls were tired.

"Let's check someone else out," Hinata suggested.

Sakura passed the laptop to Hinata, after she went back to the list of men which was previously displayed, and scooted beside her. The rest of the girls crowded around the Hyuuga, curious to see what they might find as Hinata began to scroll through the list.

Only a few moments had passed until Temari broke the silence, "WAIT!"

Hinata jumped slightly at the sudden cry from her friend. All the girls glanced questioningly at Temari, who looked like she was about to have a heart-attack.

"What!?" Ino asked, more curious than shocked.

"Scroll up, Hinata." Temari commanded, scrutinizing the screen.

Hinata's eyes turned back to the laptop and she slowly scrolled higher up the page, watching as countless images of men flashed past.

"There!" Temari gasped. "Do you guys see it?"

Hinata stopped scrolling, and all the girls stared at the screen.

"See what?" Ino asked, as the others looked at Temari.

"That guy there," Temari pointed, "H-he looks like Kankurō!"

"Your brother?" Tenten stared at the screen to where Temari had pointed.

"I haven't seen him without his makeup on before…" Sakura trailed off, doubt showing through her voice.

Hinata selected the image of Temari's supposed brother. The screen loaded quickly, and just like the previous man's profile, there was a box next to the enlarged image.

All the girls gasped as Hinata read out, "Name; Kankurō."

"No way!" Ino stared at the screen.

Temari suddenly burst out laughing, "I can't believe he would-" she broke off into a fit of giggles, "I just can't!"

"I can't believe he's actually _hot_!" Ino exclaimed.

Hinata felt herself blush as her eyes roamed over the nearly naked picture of Kankurō, his rock hard stomach exposed, and his pants sitting dangerously low around his waist.

Temari stopped laughing after hearing Ino's comment and took a closer look. "He actually does look good without that kabuki paint on…" she stated and felt her cheeks begin to warm up, after realizing what she's just said out loud.

"Incest!" Sakura and Ino shouted at the same time, laughing hysterically.

"Hey! I'm just being honest!" Temari huffed, throwing a pillow at her blonde friend, who quickly dodged it. "Besides," Temari continued, "it's not incest saying your sibling looks good. It was just... big-sister-admiration!"

Sakura calmed herself and smiled, "I know. We were just joking!"

"He has 24 likes out of the 29 people who rented him," Hinata stated.

"29!?" Temari cried. "How did I not know about any of this?!"

"Wait, did he tick off the 'sex' box?" Ino asked, curiosity shining in her eyes.

"Yes," Hinata smirked at Temari.

"Don't do that!" Ino laughed hysterically, gently hitting Hinata's knee. "You look like Neji when you smirk!"

"Wait, Hinata! Smirk again! I didn't see! I didn't even think she could!" Sakura laughed, trying to get the Hyuuga to look at her.

With that, Hinata began to blush profusely, muttering an apology.

"Don't apologize," Temari giggled, "It was adorable, trust me!"

"It says he's great in bed," Tenten chuckled, "and that his stamina is good too!"

The girls all laughed at this.

"Wait, just a thought. If Kankurō's on here, I wonder if your other brother is." Tenten smiled evilly, looking at Temari.

"Good idea!" Ino squealed.

Hinata found a search option, where you could type in a search word that made it easier to find what you were looking for. She quickly typed in ' _Gaara'_ and pressed enter. However, after the page was finished loading, it was blank, expect for the words, _'no results matched your search'_.

"Aww…" Ino pouted, obviously sulking. "He's hot."

"Thank goodness!" Temari breathed a sigh of relief. "At least one of my brothers are normal."

"Hey, I wonder if anyone else from our college is on here," Hinata said.

"Yeah!" Ino agreed.

"What?" Sakura asked, "Are we just going to type in the names of random guys who go here and see if anything comes up?"

"Sounds like a plan!" Tenten giggled, leaning over and typing in the most obvious one _, 'Uchiha Sasuke'_.

Everyone gasped as they saw a picture of the infamous Sasuke show up on the screen.

"WHAT!?" Sakura couldn't believe it.

The other girls began to laugh as they selected his image. The enlarged picture showed Sasuke fully-clothed in a formal-ish getup that made him look super sexy.

"Wow!" Ino snickered. "Who knew!?"

The other girls laughed as they scrolled further on. He had written things about how he was still in college and how sporty he was. He also mentioned what he liked and what he didn't like.

"He hates chocolate?" Tenten sounded displeased.

He had only ticked off the box saying, 'boyfriend' / 'dating'.

"So he's actually looking for a long-term relationship?" Hinata asked, pointing to the box he'd ticked off.

"Who knew he ever wanted a girlfriend?" Tenten wondered.

"Or boyfriend," Temari laughed, causing the others to laugh with her.

Out of the 83 people who rented him, only 2 _liked_ him. Apparently he was _"hard to please"_ and _"too rude!"_ and he _"didn't do the job right!"_

"Ouch," Ino said.

Sakura giggled, "Well, what were you expecting?!"

Other comments said things like, _"so sexy!"_ and _"I want him now!"_ or _"My dream babe! Too bad he's so rude! :P"_

"I'm sure it's not his fault," Sakura stated.

Hinata glanced at Sakura, "Not who's fault for what?"

"I mean," Sakura continued, "I bet it's the girls who aren't treating him right. I'll bet they just look at his picture and rent him without even reading what he's like. Or maybe they swoon too much or treat him like he's so amazing. So he probably just kind of feels uninterested."

"And you think you'd do better?" Ino looked at her friend.

"What?! N-"

"I dare you to rent him!'

Sakura stared at her friend. What was she saying?! Rent Sasuke?! "Wait! You said we weren't renting anyone!"

"Change of plans!" Ino smirked darkly.

The other girls snickered.

"But I don't want to! I'll feel stupid! It's not like he'd give me a chance anyway!"

"Come on! I dare you!" Ino persisted. "Maybe he will fall for you!"

"I mean," Tenten began, "He _is_ looking for a girlfriend, why don't you help him out?"

"And don't worry about the price," Ino quickly covered the screen so the others couldn't see how much he was asking for. "We'll all help you pay if you want. Besides, you're one of the few girls who don't swoon over him!"

Hinata nodded, agreeing with Ino.

"I-I don't know…" Sakura looked uncertain.

"Okay, if you do get him to fall for you, then all of us will rent a boyfriend as well. And you can choose who we rent." Ino offered, desperate to get her friend to hook up with the Uchiha.

Sakura smiled evilly, "Hinata renting a boyfriend? Okay!"

The other girls giggled as Hinata blushed.

"Just don't put me with Kankurō!" Temari stated, knowing how evil Sakura could be.

"I won't," she said with an evil glint in her eye. "I already have someone in mind for you. Oh, and by the way, you don't have to pay for it," she said to Ino.

"AWESOME!" Ino cheered as she turned to the laptop. "Now, let's rent!"

"Wait." Sakura said, "We don't have to _rent_ him. I can just talk to him in person. I mean he goes to the same college as us, so why-?"

"Come on!" Ino smirked, "I really want to see what he'll do when he finds out _you_ actually _rented_ him!"

The other girls laughed at their friend's childishness, as Ino took the laptop from Hinata. She selected the _RENT!_ button, only to be lead to a new page. Here, she just needed to type up a message for Sasuke and agree to the terms and conditions. She typed a message saying;

 _"Hey! You don't sound half bad. I'd like to meet you! I'll be waiting for you in the park that's on the way to Konoha College tomorrow._

 _xxx"_

"There," Ino said as she put the laptop down in front of her, closing the screen.

"What did you say?" Sakura asked.

"I just said that you'd like to meet him tomorrow at the park," Ino shrugged.

"Who did you say it was from? Did you say my real name or did you choose an alias for me?" Sakura asked, curious.

Ino's eyes suddenly grew wide, and she covered her mouth with her hand "I forgot to say who it was from!" she admitted, clearly shocked with herself.

Tenten laughed, "Looks like someone's getting a surprise tomorrow!"

* * *

 **A/N:** Thank you so much for reading! I really don't know if this is worth continuing. Please review and let me know what you think!

Is it worth continuing?

And if you have any ideas of what you want to see in this fanfiction, I'm open to suggestions.

And I do apologize for any spelling and grammar errors.

Please let me know!


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH FOR ALL THE REVIEWS AND SUPPORT! You are all so encouraging! I'm especially thankful to Sanguwin, ForeverSummerSnows and Jadelau for the encouraging reviews! Otherwise thank you all so much for being so patient for this chapter because I just finished exams, so it is two days late. Otherwise you guys are all so awesome, so thank you all so much!

I still don't own Naruto.

Anyway, on with the story! And I apologize for any OOC-ness.

* * *

"Should we wake her up?" Hinata peeked into the room where Ino still lay fast asleep in a make-shift bed on her floor. The blonde had been polite enough to allow Hinata and Sakura to sleep in her bed, while she and Tenten shared a blow-up mattress. Temari had insisted on sleeping on the couch.

"Leave her be," Temari called from the kitchen as she hurriedly popped the toast before it could burn. "Could somebody help me please?!"

Hinata quickly scrambled to the kitchen to help prepare the tea. Tenten walked into the kitchen and glanced around the room, "You're making tea?" she asked, pulling a face.

Hinata turned to her and nodded, "W-Would you rather have something else?" she asked courteously.

"Some coffee would be nice," she leaned against the counter next to Hinata and watched her prepare three mugs of tea and one mug of coffee.

"Sugar?" she asked.

Tenten shook her head, "No sugar and no milk." She watched Hinata pour the boiling water before adding, "Thanks."

Hinata nodded and wrinkled her nose slightly at the smell of the caffeine. It smelt so bitter.

"Nothing for Ino?" Tenten asked as she helped Hinata carry the mugs to the small table in the living room, which sat in front the couch. Because it was a college dorm, it was uncomfortably small for all five girls. Ino's dorm was divided into two rooms. Her bedroom, which had a bathroom attached to it, and the kitchen and lounge, which was basically one room. The kitchen was small, only consisting of a fridge, a stove with an oven underneath it, a microwave and a basin for dirty dishes. Ino had brought the toaster and the kettle with her own money sometime at the beginning of the third semester.

"Nah," Temari shook her head as she walked over to them, placing a plate of pancakes and another of toast down on the table. "She can make something for herself when she gets up."

"O-okay," Hinata agreed.

"Wow!" Tenten ogled at the delicious-looking pancakes. "They look delicious! There are so many!"

Temari chuckled, "Thanks, Tenten! There's like, three each."

"I'm back!" The three girls heard Sakura call out as she opened the door to Ino's dorm and stepped in.

"Did you get it?" Temari asked, looking at Sakura, who nodded, smiling brightly. The pinkette walked over to the three girls, placing the butter and syrup on the table. "Mm! Smells delicious!" she said, sitting down on the couch.

"Where did you go?" Hinata asked, blushing ever so slightly, realizing that she hadn't even noticed that Sakura was gone.

"I went to get some butter and syrup from my dorm," she stated, "because Ino doesn't eat butter and she doesn't have syrup because of her diet."

"Ah." Hinata nodded.

"Speaking of which," Sakura said, glancing around the room, "Where is she?"

"Still sleeping," Tenten shrugged.

'Not anymore!" Sakura grinned, jumping off the couch and making her way over to the blonde's room.

"D-don't wake her!" Hinata started, "It's impolite…" Temari and Hinata followed Sakura to Ino's dorm, however, only the pinkette went inside.

"She'll be fine!" Temari laughed. "She's our friend. Besides, her pancakes are getting cold."

Hinata nodded, unsure. "Well, I guess it would be rude if we all started eating without her…"

"Exactly!" Temari smiled at the Hyuuga.

Inside Ino's dorm, Sakura made her way over to the sleeping blonde on the mattress. She reached out her hands, ready to give her a shake to wake her, but before she could, Ino's voice filled the room, "Don't. You. Dare." She warned.

"Oh good!" Sakura smiled. "You're awake!"

"Whatever," Ino grunted, yawning as she sat up.

"Come on," Sakura beckoned her to follow, "breakfast is ready."

"Breakfast?!" Ino asked excitedly, "Is it carb-free?!"

"No ways!" Sakura smirked. "It's pancakes!"

Ino grunted, trying to hide her excitement. She loved pancakes.

Only a few moments later, Sakura walked out with a tired Ino following behind her. Temari and Hinata smiled at their blonde friend, who only yawned in response. Even though Ino had just woken up, she looked like she had just come back from the beauty salon. That was the thing about Ino. She always looked pretty.

"Alright!" Tenten cried, "Let's eat! I'm starving!"

* * *

Sasuke turned the page of the book he was reading, trying extremely hard not to let his irritation show. He had been waiting since ten that morning, and now it was nearing two o'clock. He inwardly hissed. Who did his date think she was to schedule to meet and not choose a _time_?! He couldn't even ask her, because she hadn't left any contact details in her message. Not even her name! So he couldn't email her or text her or anything! Was she an air-head or something? He hated air-heads!

He'd had to hurriedly get dressed that morning, after he had woken up late. But that was only because Naruto had come over to visit Sasuke the night before and the blonde had the full intention of keeping him up until three the next morning. He scowled. Sasuke had only had enough time to shower and quickly put on a pair jeans and a tight black long-sleeved shirt. It was quite cold, after all.

Growing frustrated with every second, he glanced up from his book, looking around at the people who were in the park. He was very patiently waiting for someone- anyone- to approach him and say, "Hey! I'm here for the date!" but no-one did!

The Uchiha was beginning to have second thoughts about this. What if this was a prank? What if nobody was actually planning on seeing him? With that, he sighed, agitated.

Just then, he glanced toward the entrance of the park, where he saw-

' _Wait!'_ Sasuke nearly choked on his oxygen. _'Isn't that girl in one of my classes?! Sakura?!'_ The Uchiha seemed to pale. He immediately glanced back down at his book, trying desperately to hide himself from her. He couldn't just jump up and run because then she would surely spot him. _'SHE rented me!? How did she find out that I was on that 'Rent a Boyfriend site!?''_

Haruno Sakura. He knew her name because she sat right in front of him during calculus, but he didn't actually know who she was. He'd never cared. And he still didn't. Sakura was just another girl to avoid. He always avoided girls at college. He didn't know why, but he never had the intention of dating any of them. Girls who were from other colleges, yes. But never had he ever thought that he might date _her._

Sasuke knew she was best friends with that annoying blonde fangirl, Yamanaka Ino, and he also knew she was friends with that Tenten girl and the Hyuuga. Temari didn't matter to him either. She was practically three years ahead of him.

Sakura was one of those girls who worked hard and it showed. She always had the second-best grades in the class; first being him, obviously, but he'd never really cared. He didn't think she'd ever catch up and he hardly paid her any mind. No. Haruno Sakura was just another girl he didn't care about.

' _Maybe it's not her-'_ Sasuke inwardly tried to calm himself down. She was definitely not here for him. She was probably meeting one of her friends or something. Yes. That was probably why she was here.

Looking up once more, Sasuke saw how the pinkette searched around, obviously looking for someone. There was another lady walking behind her, and Sasuke couldn't help but hope that it was that other person that he was supposed to meet. However, his heart sank as he saw her head off in another direction, going up to hug some other random guy.

Then finally, Sakura caught his eye and smiled brightly. He inwardly cursed. He was doomed.

He watched, dreading every step the girl made towards him, though he tried to force himself to be at least a little polite. Standing up and placing his book down on the bench where he had just been sitting, he folded his arms across his chest and waited for Sakura to approach him.

"Hey!' she greeted excitedly.

"Hn." The Uchiha glared at her. This was so embarrassing! She was from his college! She _knew_ him. They were in the same calculus class! Why had she decided to rent him?! ' _She's probably just messing with me!'_ He thought angrily. _'This is probably her just mocking me for being on that site!'_

' _Jeez! I thought he wanted a girlfriend!_ ' Sakura thought to herself. Why was he so sour!? Pretending not to notice him glaring, she excitedly smiled and said, "Hi! I'm Haruno Sakura!"

"I know. Don't pretend we just met for the first time," the Uchiha stated dryly.

Sakura scowled, _'Ugh! Why was he so difficult?!'_ She just wanted to slap him! They were silent for a long moment, both clearly not sure what to say. Though, Sakura knew she was probably the only one trying think of what to say! This made her inwardly growl. He had such an attitude! _'I can't believe I'm doing this! Why did I listen to Ino in the first place? All because of a stupid dare… And a nice reward if I win! Maybe he thinks this is just as awkward as I do!'_

"You didn't mention a time."

"A what?" Sakura was caught off-guard. ' _He said something?! Sasuke broke the silence?!'_

"A time. To meet."

"OH!" Sakura blushed, inwardly cursing Ino for her mistake and making a mental note to herself to chew the blonde out about this later. "S-sorry… Did you wait long?"

The Uchiha only shrugged.

' _What was I thinking!? Of course he waited long! He probably waited the whole morning for me!'_

"Come on." Sasuke sighed, picking up his previously discarded book. "Let's go grab a smoothie."

Taken by surprise, she nodded and followed after Sasuke as he led the way out of the park and towards the smoothie café that was just opposite it.

Sakura took this time to think about her stupidity. She couldn't believe she was doing this. She was going on a date. With Uchiha Sasuke. _The_ Uchiha Sasuke! _'How silly of me to think that this could actually ever work.'_ Maybe she should just give up. Maybe he wasn't actually looking for a girlfriend. Sakura sighed as they approached the café. Sasuke opened the door for her, letting her enter first, after following behind her.

"What do you want?" he asked, nodding towards the giant menus on display. The café had quite a lovely interior and Sakura couldn't help but smile at the cute décor. Sasuke noticed her smile and couldn't resist taking that opportunity to consider her appearance. Sakura was wearing black tights with a cute red jersey that was a tiny bit too big for her, and which he noticed brought out her emerald eyes really well, along with a pair of beige boots.

' _Cute,'_ he thought, watching her subconsciously pull the long sleeves of her jersey over her hands, leaving only the tips of her fingers visible. He smirked, figuring it meant she wasn't sure what to order. "I like the berry one," he stated. "Though it's a bit too sweet."

Sakura looked at him and nodded. "O-kay then. Thanks. I think I'll try it," she smiled and the two of them headed over to the counter to order.

"Two berry smoothies," Sasuke said, pulling out his wallet. The beautiful, ginger-haired cashier nodded, repeating the order and asking if there was anything else they wanted. Sasuke shook his head as he began to look through his wallet after being told the price. He pulled out enough money to pay for the two smoothies.

"I can pay for myself, you know." Sakura said to him, raising an eyebrow at his sudden gentlemanly act.

"That's not necessary," he said, passing a note over to the smiling cashier and taking the smoothies in both hands after pocketing his wallet. "Here," he said, handing the girl beside him a one of the berry drinks.

"Thanks," Sakura mumbled, accepting the cool treat. She didn't understand. His attitude always seemed to keep changing. In the park he was so sour, and yet, now he was acting like a gentleman. She knew he was said to be quite rude by the other students at the college, and the comments on the website only confirmed it. However, he was still the most desired guy in their year. And maybe even in the whole college. Sakura shook her head _, 'Maybe he was just trying to impress that cashier…'_

"Let's go," Sasuke said. It was more of an order.

Sakura made a face. _'Now he's bossing me around. What a jerk.'_ Though she couldn't help but feel slightly happy. She and Sasuke were on a date and he'd actually paid for her drink! It almost felt like a real date and not just some random, online, spur-of-the-moment thing. It felt like they were two lovers who had met in college and developed strong, bitter-sweet crushes on each other. And Sakura sort of wished that was true.

They seated themselves at one of the café's many cute tables, sitting opposite to one another. Sipping at their smoothies, they sat in silence, both not really intent on making conversation. Sakura was too worked-up trying to think of what to say, while Sasuke was absorbed in his own thoughts.

' _What am I going to do?'_ Sakura mentally screamed at herself. _'What should I say? We can't just spend the rest of our date like this!'_ she sighed. She didn't know why she was even trying. This was Uchiha Sasuke. Sasuke treated every girl the same. She wasn't any special.

Sasuke inwardly grunted in annoyance when he heard Sakura sigh. _'Now what?!'_ he hated this date. It was awkward and they'd see each other again on Monday. Every day after that, to be exact. He was so embarrassed that she had seen him on that site. She probably thought he was so desperate for a girlfriend and to find love. But he was not! Why did she even decide to _rent_ him? For fun? To laugh about it later? To see _The_ Uchiha Sasuke feel awkward and embarrassed about dating one of his classmates?! Sakura couldn't possibly want to date him. She had never shown remotely any interest in him before. So why now? He clenched his fist around the smoothie he still held. Maybe this was Ino's doing. They probably made a bet. To see which one of them could make him fall for them first. Countless fangirls had done that to him in the past. It was always like that. No girl looked at him and wondered who he really was. They always looked at him like he was some prize. Nobody looked past his appearance.

Sasuke felt his blood begin to boil. If Sakura thought she could just joke around with him, then she was dead wrong.

They were silent for a few moments before Sasuke spoke, his voice as calm as ever, never showing emotion.

"Why?"

Sakura was shocked, to say the least. She hadn't expected him to initiate conversation. However, she wasn't sure what he was talking about. "I'm sorry. 'Why' what?"

"Why did you do it? Why did you rent me?"

The girl before him raised her eyebrows in disbelief. Of all the things to ask on a first date. "What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean. Why did you have to do it?" his voice was surprisingly calm for his growing anger.

"What do you mean, _"why did I have to_ "? I _wanted_ to go on a date with you!" Okay, so that wasn't entirely true. She had been completely against the idea the night before. But now, she was glad she was on this date. She was more curious now than ever to figure out the mystery that was Uchiha Sasuke. She wanted to see what made him act the way he did and she wanted to see what girls found so amazing about him. Sure, he was gorgeous and intelligent, but that was about it. There was nothing else that was really admirable about him. He was rude and cold. So why was everybody drawn to him?

"That's a lie," he said blankly. "You could have just asked me. In person."

Sakura was growing frustrated with every word he said. Standing up she pointed an accusing finger at him, "No ways! If I had asked you in person you would have said 'no!' And don't deny it! You know how you are! I know you turn down every girl that you see! So I had no choice! I _had_ to rent you if I ever hoped for a chance to get to know you!"

Sasuke scoffed, refusing to admit to himself that she was right. He looked her straight in the eyes, knowing what was coming next.

"But fine. If you don't believe me- that I actually _wanted_ to date you- then I might as well leave!" and with that, she picked up her smoothie, ready to dash straight out of the door, before something stopped her.

Sasuke held out his hand to her, palm showing, as if he was waiting for something.

"What?" Sakura couldn't bite back the anger that showed in her voice.

"Money."

Sakura was visibly fuming, "For what?!"

"The date. You rented me. I charge. Now you have to pay."

The pinkette's cheeks were turning a shade of red, showing her frustration and extreme embarrassment. "I don't have money for you! How much was it anyway?!"

"3000."

Sakura couldn't believe what she was hearing. ' _3000 yen!?_ ' She didn't have that kind of money! Not right now, anyway.

As if reading what the expression on her face meant, Sasuke looked her in the eyes, black onyx meeting grass green. Sakura could see the anger and frustration in his eyes that was hidden so well by his features, as she was sure he could see hers. "Monday then." He said plainly.

"Sure! Whatever!" the girl spat as she stormed off, out of the café, and headed straight for her dorm on the college campus.

Sasuke could only stare at the spot where the pinkette had sat just a moment ago. Ignoring the looks that the other customers in the café were giving him, he continued to sit and sip at his smoothie.

* * *

"Okay, Sakura. I can see you're frustrated. Calm down and tell me what happened," Ino pulled one of Sakura's pillows onto her lap as Sakura sat back down next to her on the bed.

"He's just so difficult!" Sakura burst out, handing Ino the can of soda she had just retrieved from her fridge. "He doesn't trust anyone! It's like he tries to shut himself from others. I mean, the only friend he has is Naruto!" Sakura complained, opening her can and taking a sip of the fizzy drink.

They were in Sakura's dorm, much to Sakura's dismay. She had been intended on getting to her dorm and just forgetting about it, but Ino was waiting for her, clearly excited to hear how everything had gone.

" _Tell me everything!" Ino had chirped._

 _Sakura had offered her a weak smile and had led her friend into her dorm. "Nothing amazing happened, really."_

 _Ino had pouted after hearing Sakura's sour tone. She'd noticed how stiffly Sakura was moving and how she was gritting her teeth. She shook her head as they made their way into Sakura's small bedroom and she took a seat on Sakura's bed, while Sakura had made a quick trip to her mini-fridge._

" _Okay, Sakura. I can see you're frustrated. Calm down and tell me what happened,"_

This led to their current situation and Sakura had to admit that she was touched that her friend was always there for her and knew exactly when to come through.

"You know what I mean Ino?" the pinkette asked, glancing over at her blonde friend.

"Mm hm," Ino answered absent-mindedly, turning the can over in her hands and eyeing it suspiciously.

"Its diet," Sakura smiled, playfully rolling her eyes at her friend's actions.

"Thanks," Ino smiled sheepishly, popping the can open and taking a sip. "So what happened anyway?"

"Well," Sakura stopped for a moment, biting her lip nervously, "We sort of argued."

"On the first date?!" Ino asked, clearly shocked.

Sakura only nodded, looking down at the can she still held in her hands. "He asked me why I had rented him. He said I could have just asked."

"But he would have denied!" Ino interrupted her friend, frowning.

"I know! That's what I told him!" Sakura exclaimed, almost exasperated. "I mean, if I just turned around in class and said, 'Hey! You wanna date?!' he would _not_ have said 'yes!' I can't believe he thinks I'm not sincere. He probably thinks I just rented him as a joke! He thinks I didn't actually want to date him! I mean, I'm not that kind of person. I can't believe he thinks I would be that shallow."

Ino nodded, urging her friend to continue.

"And at the end of our fight, he had the nerve to ask me for 3000 Yen!" Sakura said, the anger from before flooding back.

Ino chuckled nervously. "Yeah…" the blonde had known how much the Uchiha had charged, but she'd just decided not to say anything.

Looking over at her friend, the pinkette gasped, remembering something important that she'd almost completely forgotten about. She glared playfully at her friend and crossed her arms over her chest.

"What?" the blonde shrugged, trying to look nonchalant, hiding the worry she was feeling.

"You didn't mention a time, by the way!" Sakura said.

Ino smiled sheepishly, "Oops?"

Sakura only laughed, "Sasuke had been waiting since this morning for me!"

"Serves him right!" Ino laughed. "Maybe he got what he deserved!"

The two girls continued to laugh as Ino tried to make her mistake seem like a positive.

"Well," Ino said, finally calm, "you two can't just leave this how it is."

"So what should I do?" Sakura asked, grabbing a pillow and hugging it to her chest. "He doesn't like me."

Ino gave her friend a sad smile, "Talk to him, okay? Come on girl, on Monday the two of you can talk about it. I mean, how complicated would it be if you two just left today how it was. You'd never date him again, talking would be weird, and remember, you'd lose the bet. Plus, class would be so… awkward."

Sakura nodded, smiling, "Yeah. I'll try to talk about it with him."

"Great!" Ino smiled widely, hugging her best friend.

* * *

It was nearing five o'clock, and the sun had already begun to paint the sky with pinks and oranges.

Sasuke sighed, still sitting in the café where he and Sakura had had smoothies. He pinched the bridge of his nose, remembering the argument they'd had clearly. He hadn't been able to head off back to the college. He had too much to think about. And he didn't want to bump into Sakura.

' _Did I really start an argument with her on our first date?'_ he thought to himself. This was probably their last date, too.

The Uchiha sighed. He knew he didn't mind Sakura as much as he minded most other girls. But he didn't know why. Maybe it was because she didn't suck up to him. She didn't swoon or flirt with him.

Sasuke bit his lip as he immediately felt a wave of guilt wash over him.

"Whatever," he muttered to himself, forcing the feelings down. Cursing under his breath, he dumped some money on the table to pay for the other smoothie he had bought and enough for a tip. Finally heading back to the college, he couldn't help but remember Sakura's fiery eyes and extreme anger. He clenched his hands into fists. Maybe he had been a bit… much.

He inwardly groaned. Calculus was going to be so awkward.

* * *

 **A/N:** I wanted to make this chapter longer and continue with the next day, but I think this is a good place to end it.

Holidays are coming up soon, so I will probably be able to update faster!

Otherwise please keep letting me know what you guys think and please don't be too harsh.

Otherwise you guys are all awesome and I really want to hear if you guys have any ideas and you can tell me what you would like to see in this fanfiction!


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N** : Okay, I'm so sorry for the late update! I went away for the holiday, but I'm happy to present chapter 3!

Otherwise thank you so much to everyone who reviewed! I really appreciate it and I promise I will finish this fanfiction for you guys!

I hope you enjoy this chapter!

And I do not own Naruto.

* * *

' _I can do this. It's just a simple concept: apologise and make up.'_

Sakura shifted uncomfortably in her seat. It was her last class of the day, Calculus. Her lecturer droned on and on, and Sakura hardly paid him any mind. He was just background noise.

Her mind was fixed permanently on the fight scene of yesterday, replaying it over and over in her head. Sasuke had made her so angry! And she couldn't stop thinking about it. She remembered scraping the chair on the café floor as she abruptly stood up and she remembered yelling at him. She remembered looking into his eyes and she remembered how that _jerk_ still had the nerve to ask her to pay. At this thought, her blood instantly began to boil and she felt her cheeks warm up. She was fuelled with anger. She glared down at the page in front of her and scowled.

' _Wow. Now I'm becoming more like him,'_ she told herself sarcastically.

She inwardly groaned. ' _There's no use getting mad about it now,'_ Sakura told herself, trying to calm down. What happened yesterday couldn't be changed. But she couldn't help but feel a little bit angry toward the Uchiha. After Ino had left the previous afternoon, Sakura had spent the rest of the day wandering around the vacant collage building. She was filled with a feeling of lonliness and emptiness and she felt utterly miserable. She was walking around aimlessly, not really sure where she was headed. But now, thinking back to the day before, she realised that she was subconsciously looking for Sasuke. She was hoping that she'd bump into him. She _wanted_ to see him. The reason for that, she did not know.

' _Okay, I know it wasn't my fault that we fought, but I'll still apologize for it because I know that if I leave it up to him, we're never going to get anywhere!'_ And as much as Sakura hated to admit it to herself, she actually wanted to date him. She needed to see who he really was. She wanted to show him that not everyone focused on looks alone.

Sakura rested her head in the palm of her left hand. _'Why am I so nervous just to talk to him!?'_ Just thinking about it made her feel flustered and she could feel her heart begin to race. Maybe it was because she was worried that she'd say the wrong thing. Something that would surely ruin any chance of him wanting to get to know her again.

' _I was fine on the date! So why am I getting so worked up now?'_ Sakura inwardly sighed. She needed to calm down. She just needed to talk to Sasuke. No biggie. He was still the same as yesterday. _'Who am I kidding? He practically hates me! He doesn't trust me! He thinks I'm just messing with him!'_ the pinkette growled in frustration. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes. _'Well, who wouldn't be afraid to trust others if…'_ Opening her eyes, she sighed. Sasuke sort of did have the right to behave the way he did. No girl was ever true to him. They only wanted to date him for his looks or for the status that he held as the most popular and desired boy. As well as the wealthiest.

Sakura looked up as her lecturer, Morino Ibiki, stopped speaking and stood in front of his desk. He looked around the room as if he was examining everyone, searching into their souls. He always seemed like he was doing that. He had deep penetrating eyes that seemed to see through lies. Which they probably could.

"This is the end of the lecture. You may leave now. The last to leave, please leave the door open." And with that, he nodded at the class and walked behind his desk, gathering some papers together and filing new documents.

The class broke out into a roar of chatter and laughter, but Sakura was frozen in place _. 'Oh no! The end of the lesson? That means-!'_ The pinkette swallowed hard as she thought about her upcoming doom. Now she had to talk to Sasuke!

Looking back down at her books, she began to pack them away into her bag. _'What am I going to do?! I can't just say, "Sorry for yesterday_ ," and _walk off! Aw! I'm so nervous!'_ She hurriedly stuffed everything into her bag, not really caring that the pages of her notebook were bent.  
 _'I feel like I'm walking into this blindly. Why can't he just apologize first?'_ Sakura moaned in her head. She felt her heart beat faster and her thoughts were running all over the place. _'Maybe he'll talk to me first_ ,' Sakura thought hopefully. _'I mean, he does want the money…_ '

Taking a deep breath, Sakura clenched her fists. ' _No_.' If she wasn't going to do anything about this, then no-one would! She turned around quickly, just catching Sasuke as he stood up from his desk. There was an awkward silence between the two as the raven-haired boy glared slightly at the girl before him.

He held her gaze, before Sakura pulled away and looked around, realizing that she hadn't even noticed everyone leave. She was alone with Uchiha Sasuke.

Sasuke watched as the girl before him looked slowly around the room. _'Ha. She just noticed the room was empty. Classic air-head.'_ The Uchiha couldn't help but let a small smirk grace his lips. He didn't think Sakura would actually have the guts to confront him.

He watched her gaze drift around the classroom. As much as he wanted to avoid the confrontation and dash out of the room right under her nose, he had to admit that he was even more curious to hear what she had to say. In a way, Sakura intrigued him. She was definitely different from any other girls he had met before and she was intelligent and she did things that Sasuke didn't expect. She didn't apologize when she made him mad and she didn't suck up to him. Sakura didn't dress in almost nothing to impress him and she didn't try to flirt. She didn't tell him how amazing he was and how gorgeous he looked or how sexy his mysterious personality was. She wasn't clingy and she didn't change herself to impress him. Yes, the pinkette definitely interested him.

He figured she was going to try to talk to him about their date and the argument they'd had. But he couldn't believe she'd actually decided to do it. During the lecture, he could see how distressed she was. She was constantly fidgeting and looking at the clock. Obviously, she was very nervous to do this. And maybe, he was also a little nervous. He didn't know what she would say. What if she just started accusing him or what if she pushed him to go on the defensive? Sasuke inwardly sighed. There was no guarantee that this was going to go well.

However, this confrontation was obviously going to happen. Sasuke had even begun to pack his bag at a very slow pace. He had wanted to hear what Sakura was going to say. Though now, he felt he was regretting his decision. He didn't know what would happen. She was so unpredictable.

On the bright side, he could get what he needed from her. She still had an outstanding fee to pay him.

Sakura knew she owed him money, and he wanted to see if she would actually pay up or admit to him that she couldn't afford it. He scoffed at the thought. She hadn't even known how much he was asking for before she rented him _. 'Typical,'_ he scowled _. 'She probably just rented me straight away when she saw my picture, without even checking the price or reading the description I wrote.'_

At this thought, he felt the familiar feeling of anger flood through his body. He clenched his fist at his side, in an attempt to control his rage. He hated that the pinkette might have only decided to date him because of his appearance or social status. He didn't know why, but he'd hoped that Sakura wasn't like the other girls. He didn't want her to want him like other previous chancers. He wanted Sakura to think he was beautiful on the outside as well as on the inside. He wanted her to know how lonely he sometimes felt. He always felt like he was just a prize to be won. He hated how no-one knew the 'real' him. He felt like he was forced to act cold and heartless. He wished she wasn't like his past women-experiences.

Coming back to reality, the Uchiha wondered how long she was going to keep him waiting. She was just sitting there, looking as nervous as ever. As if he was some ferocious beast that would bite her head off the minute she opened her mouth. Sasuke smirked at this. He was never the patient type for people who wasted his time, but for some reason, he enjoyed watching her squirm in her nervous state as she gazed around the empty room.

' _What's she thinking?'_ he thought to himself.

"Are you actually going to say something or are you just going to sit there fidgeting?"

At this, the pinkette looked up at the raven-haired boy. She hadn't expected him to be so insensitive about her nervousness. She thought that he would have at least appreciated her efforts to try and talk to him.

She inwardly scowled. He knew she was struggling to do this, so why didn't _he_ start the conversation since he was _so_ eager to get it over with?!

Taking a deep breath, Sakura narrowed her eyes at Sasuke. "Alright," she spat, "I'm sorry for the other day."

"That didn't sound very apologetic," the Uchiha smirked, folding his arms across his chest. Now she was being sarcastic. Clearly she didn't like the way he'd addressed her.

Sakura huffed, "Well, at least _I_ tried to apologise! You're not even making an attempt to say sorry! It's like you don't even want us to-!" she cut herself off. What if Sasuke didn't want to apologise because… He didn't want them to date again? What if he thought she was terrible to go out with and what if he didn't like her? Maybe he was acting the way he was because he knew she would try to make up with him and then suggest another date. Maybe he thought she was just another stupid girl who was head-over-heels for him. _'That's probably what he thinks: that I'm just another fangirl! Aargh!'_

Sasuke raised a delicate brow when Sakura suddenly stopped talking _. 'even want us to- what?'_ What was she going to say? He was… curious. What was she thinking? Did she think he didn't like her? That he just thought of her as another college girl? _'But what does she 'want us to-' do-? Together? Another date?_ ' Thinking about it, Sasuke realized that he wouldn't mind going on another date with the pinkette. She was definitely different from any other woman he'd ever met, let alone, shown an interest in.

.

.

.

' _Wait…'_

Did he just admit that to himself? That he was… interested… in Sakura!?

"Uh- anyway," Sakura quickly said, bringing Sasuke out of his thoughts. "I- I just think we should make up. And let's forget about the other day, okay?" The pinkette spoke softly, lowering her head.

"Hn." Sasuke noticed that she wasn't looking at him. _'She's probably hiding a blush,'_ he thought, _'Maybe she thinks I don't want us to make up.'_ He looked at the door of the classroom, and after casting Sakura one more glance, he picked his bag up and headed toward the exit.

Sakura looked up immediately after she noticed the Uchiha begin his departure. "Hey! Wait!"

Sasuke stopped at the door, not bothering to look back at the girl who had called him. What did she want now?

"You haven't said your part of the apology yet!" she said indignantly, getting up from her desk and coming to a stop right behind Sasuke. _'Swallow your pride for once Uchiha and say sorry!'_

"You're right," Sasuke said, turning around to face the girl, "Let's forget about it." He felt like he owed her that much. An apology after the way he had made her so angry on their date. He knew he may have been a little harsh on her.

Sakura smiled at him, and it was only then that he actually took the chance to _look_ at her. Even though Sasuke hated to admit it, she was… attractive. Beautiful. She was modest about her body and didn't hitch her skirt up or unbutton her school shirt whenever she saw him, unlike his fangirls did. She had unique hair and she had beautiful eyes to match it.  
He felt his face heat up a bit, but it was too slight for the pinkette to notice. He clenched his hands into fists and bit back a growl. Gosh! He was turning into such a loser!

"A-Are you okay?" she asked, leaning a little closer to him to get a better look. Sakura noticed the way Sasuke was clenching his fists. _'He's staring… is there something he wants to ask me?'_

Sasuke immediately caught himself. He was staring? "I'm fine." He was grateful that he hadn't stuttered.

"Great!" the pinkette chirped, not really feeling what she was displaying. She was a little worried about what would happen next. They'd made up but that didn't guarantee that they would date ever again. This just made them classmates once more. _'Looks like I'm back at square one.'_

She watched as he walked out of the classroom and down the corridor. _'Well,'_ Sakura sighed. _'That whole rent a boyfriend thing totally backfired.'_

"Oh, hey Sakura!"

Sakura turned around after hearing her name being called. "Tenten!" She smiled at her friend as she approached her from the opposite side of the passage. Tenten stopped in front of Sakura, smiling back, "What are you still doing here? Class ended about fifteen minutes ago."

Sakura chuckled nervously, "Oh nothing. I just sorted something out with… a friend."

"Oh, is everything okay?"

"Of course!" Sakura waved the question away with a light-hearted laugh. "Just an awkward encounter, that's all."

"Oh," Tenten suddenly smirked. "Was it Sasuke?"

"Sort of," Sakura answered honestly. "But we sorted it out."

"You sure? 'Cos you can talk to me about anything, you know that, right?"

Sakura nodded, "Thanks, Tenten." Then she realized something. "Hey, shouldn't you be at basketball training?"

"What? Oh, uh, n-no, there's no training today! Nope, not today!" Tenten said in a rush.

Sakura raised a brow at her friend's sudden change of mood. _'I bet it has something to do with Lee. Maybe he's overworking her again.'_  
Well, it _was_ Tenten's idea to join the basketball team, even though the teachers had refused to let her take part, considering it was only a boy's sport. But because Tsunade was the principal (and a very powerful woman), she insisted that she was not about to run a school where there were gender inequalities, and thus, let Tenten join the team. On the condition that she would have to take extra lessons to catch up with the other boys. Tenten had agreed, although she had her doubts about being allowed to play matches against other schools, because it would be unfair. But she didn't mind. Besides, Temari also did basketball now and the two of them loved to work together on a team. But unfortunately, the coach thought it would be funny to make Tenten's personal trainer the most motivated person in the whole school. In other words, Lee.  
Sakura chuckled at the thought.

"Okay," She said.

"Oh, and don't forget my match tomorrow."

"Are you playing?!" Sakura asked, clearly shocked.

"I'm an extra," her friend smiled brightly, "that's an improvement at least!"

"Wow! So there's a chance you'll play?!"

"Yep!"

"Awesome! I'll totally be there and I'll tell the others!" the pinkette said enthusiastically.

"Thanks!" Tenten smiled at her before waving a hurried goodbye, obviously avoiding Sakura's suspicions about her avoiding Lee, and started heading in the opposite direction to the basketball courts.

"Just don't bunk basketball practice!" Sakura called out to her friend who was already on the other side of the passage.

Tenten tensed slightly, then turned around and shouted, "I-I'm just getting more balls!"

Some students passed by and snickered at the comment.

' _Immature,'_ Sakura thought as she made her way out of the college and onto the grounds. She skipped down the stairs at the front of building, still seeing some people hanging around on the scattered benches or sitting on the stairs.

She made her way to her dorm quickly and went to her room.

' _Tough day,_ ' she thought, before pulling out her laptop and opening it to start studying the week's work.

After Sakura realized she had been re-reading the same sentence six times, she gave up. She just couldn't stop thinking about Sasuke! And he was the whole reason why the pinkette couldn't even make sense of any of her advanced calculus notes!

"Stupid Uchiha." Sakura muttered to herself. She felt angry at him but she didn't know why! Sakura knew she didn't really have a reason to be mad at him. Or maybe she wasn't mad at him, but at their current situation. She couldn't deny that she wanted things to change between the two of them. She didn't want to know him as just her calculus classmate.

At this rate, they wouldn't have another date or romantic encounter or anything! Why was it so difficult for a girl to win his heart?

Sakura sighed. She knew now that she actually did want him to fall for her. She wanted him like her and maybe even, hopefully, love her. She wanted to get to know him like no-one else did. She wanted to see the Sasuke he hid from everyone else.

But now, even their 'make up' didn't seem like it helped one bit!

Great. Things are going to stay how they are. She was stuck in a ditch. There was no way he was going to speak to her and she couldn't start a conversation with him because 1: he wouldn't listen to her, 2: she wouldn't know what to say and 3: …his fangirls…

Sakura sighed for what felt like the millionth time that day, _'This is hopeless! I really thought this whole bet would work in my favour. I thought I would be able to get to know him better and maybe, just maybe, make him fall for me. But he's just too cold for that,_ ' she thought bitterly _._

She shoved her laptop to the side, deciding that going to bed was the best thing she could do at the moment.

The pinkette prepared to go to sleep, and after brushing her teeth, she sat in bed and read a book for a few minutes.

Suddenly, she gasped. She shut the book and quickly shoved it onto her bedside table. She grabbed her laptop from where she'd previously discarded it and pulled it onto her lap. _'I can't believe I never thought of this!'_ she cheered. Just when she thought things seemed hopeless, she remembered something. She quickly logged onto the site she knew all too well…

"I have his email address!"

* * *

"Okay. Talk later then."

"Yeah. Bye." Sasuke hung up, silencing anything that his brother may have wanted to say. He wasn't in the mood to talk.

Stepping into the shower, Sasuke sighed as the warm water cascaded over his toned body. His muscles were stiff from the long day of training for the basketball match that would be played the following day. And the raven-haired boy just felt so tired.

He had so many things to think about. And the most persistent thing on his mind was Sakura.

Sasuke grunted. He'd just left her in the classroom. He hadn't said a word that would make things less awkward. And for some strange, twisted reason, he wanted things to be okay between them.

He hated how he wanted to see her again. He wanted to talk to her and find out why she had really rented him. She couldn't have done it out of sincerity. She had purposely chosen to _rent_ him when she could have just asked.

' _No,'_ he thought to himself. She was right. He would have just said 'no'.

But he still didn't understand. Why him? Was there something Sakura was secretly after? She had never seemed even remotely interested in him before. Did she have an ulterior motive? Did she plan to make him fall for her using her charm and beauty? Not to mention that she wasn't a fangirl; everyone knew that he avoided his fangirls. But then what? What did she plan to do once he had fallen for her? Dump him and laugh about it with her friends when his heart was broken?

Sasuke realized now how afraid he was to open up to people. He'd never been in an actual relationship. He was afraid of being rejected. He hadn't ever been in a situation where he wanted to show others who he really was. Everyone just liked him for what he seemed to be; stoic and distant. Sometimes even arrogant.  
And in his opinion, opening up to someone like Sakura would just be bad news. She was too... different. She wasn't like the other girls and he wasn't sure why. She had never paid any attention to him and then all of a sudden, he was DATING her! It just seemed unrealistic. She couldn't possibly expect him to believe that she really wanted to be in a relationship with him. It was just too sudden.

But what if she was sincere? What if she truly did want to date him? And not as a joke?

The Uchiha growled and aggressively shut the shower off. He couldn't think straight. He was just making himself even more tired. And he had a game on the next day.

But he couldn't help but admit that he wanted her to be sincere. Going on that date with her was just so… unlike any of the others he had gone on after signing up on that website. She didn't gush over him and try to impress him with stories of past boyfriends or what she was good at. She just spoke to him without the sultry, seductive voice the other girls had. And he had to admit that she was actually nice to talk to. She was the kind of person that he could argue with and she would stand her ground and actually try to win the argument. She wouldn't just give in to make him like her more.

Snatching the towel from the rack, he began to vigorously dry himself off. He was just frustrating himself. He needed to stop thinking about the pinkette.

Tying the towel around his waist, Sasuke stepped outside his bathroom, not expecting to see his blonde friend sitting on his bed.

"Hey!" Naruto waved, "You sure took a long time in the shower!"

"Whatever," Sasuke grunted, annoyed that his friend was in his room grinning like a mad man.

"So, what's up? You seemed distracted during basketball today."

"Nothing. It's none of your business."

The blonde nodded absently, knowing that Sasuke wouldn't tell him the truth anyway. He was like that. He didn't let anyone know how he was feeling. Except for those rare moments when he confided in his friend. Naruto smiled to himself.

"Now get out of my room," the Uchiha said coldly.

"Aww! Come on!" the blonde protested.

"Out," Sasuke continued, pointing to the door and pulling out a pair of shorts from a drawer.

"I'll look away if you're so shy or something!" Naruto laughed, watching the way Sasuke closed his eyes in annoyance.

"Fine, fine. I'm leaving." Naruto grinned, getting up and heading towards the door. He smiled when he heard Sasuke mutter, "Goodnight, Naruto."

* * *

 **A/N:** First of all, thank you for reading it and reviews would be appreciated.

Second of all, the next chapter is definitely going to be more eventful and there will be some FLUFF!

And lastly, I know most colleges don't really have matches and that only the really big, famous ones do, but this college does because I really love basketball and because it is actually a thing in some universities.

Plus I'm only in high school, so I have no idea what college life is like.

And I apologise for any spelling or grammatical errors.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N:** Hey, I'm back with another chapter for Rent A Boyfriend! Thank you so much to those who were so patient with me! And I appreciate everyone who is sticking with me through this Fanfiction. And even though I haven't updated for a while, I will still keep my promise to FINISH this Fanfiction for you guys!

And I am so grateful to all those who reviews and favourited and followed this story! You guys are my inspiration and I am so thankful!

Please enjoy chapter 4 of Rent A Boyfriend!

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto

* * *

Today was the day of the basketball match, and Sakura, Ino, Hinata and Temari were all making their way to the college's large courts.

"So," Sakura began, looking Temari's way, "why aren't you playing with Tenten today?"

Temari smirked, "because I don't have Lee as a trainer. He was very committed to make Tenten join the team. You could just say I'm lucky that I have Shikamaru as my trainer-"

"Wait, what?!" Sakura stopped dead in her tracks. "Shikamaru?!"

"Yeah… So?" Temari turned to look at her friend's shocked face, not understanding the sudden change in mood. Hinata and Ino also turned to look at the pinkette.

"Nara Shikamaru? The laziest guy in college?"

"Yeah…"

"I didn't even know he could run! You're telling me he plays basketball?!"

"Totally. He's my coach, like how Tenten has Lee. Although, I can't say he does much coaching. He doesn't really ever give me tips or techniques. He just tells me what I miss when I don't show up for practice. But, hey! It's not like I'm complaining!"

"But then why does he play? If he's too lazy to even train himself?" Sakura asked, her brows furrowing in question.

"Oh my gosh, Sakura! Don't you know; almost _all_ the popular guys here play basketball!" Ino cheered, "It gives you a rocking body and everyone knows that the girls think it's such a hot sport to play! All the sexy guys are on the team! It's just a team of hotties!"

Sakura saw how Hinata bowed her head, probably embarrassed at hearing such a statement fall from the Yamanaka's lips. _'Though, it's not like it's anything new'_ , Sakura thought to herself.

Temari nodded, agreeing with her friend, "It almost gives people a popular social status. I mean, don't you just think it's so cool when you find out a guy plays basketball? Especially since our team only accepts the _best_ players, you know?"

"But," the pinkette began, "I didn't think Shikamaru worried about being popular or having a good 'social status.'"

Temari smirked, "but see, he only joined because Naruto begged him to- and you know how annoying the Uzumaki gets when he begs. Plus, other than his schoolwork, Shikamaru has found something that he's good at. His amazing strategic ability is very beneficial to the team."

Sakura just nodded slowly, walking alongside her friends once more. She always knew their college took great pride in their basketball, but she didn't know it was considered 'hot' to play. _'Well, if basketball is so popular here,_ ' Sakura thought to herself, ' _then Sasuke is bound to play it.'_ She sighed, feeling a headache coming on at the thought of him. She had barely slept last night because she was too busy worrying about how things were going to change between them. She _wanted_ thing to change between them. If only he'd also make an effort.

She remembered typing an email to him the night before, saying all the things she couldn't tell him when she had apologized. About how she hadn't rented him for the reasons he thought she had, that she wasn't out to get him or mock him and about how she actually wanted him to give her a chance to let her befriend him. She even mentioned that she actually couldn't pay the rent fee anytime soon. At least not for another month or two.

But she hadn't sent it. She wasn't prepared to. She didn't even know if Sasuke would reply to it! No, She wasnt that deperate yet. Besides, if things were to change, it would have to be face-to-face.

She didn't voice her thoughts and ask Temari whether Sasuke was on the team or not. She didn't feel like talking about him right now. Besides, she didn't want her friends to think she was… obsessed. She wasn't, by the way. She just really needed to talk to him.

"Well," Ino cried, pulling Sakura from her thoughts, "We want to see you play next time too, Temari!"

The girl just shrugged her shoulders and muttered something about asking Lee to get her in.

The group of friends soon found themselves at the basketball courts. It was a Saturday and there were no classes to attend to so the match started early in the morning. It was already almost eight o' clock and the girls walked around the perimeter of the huge courts so that they could find a place to sit. The place seemed to be packed with supporters, both from their collage as well as from their opponent's college. _Basketball must be very popular._

They finally found a spot on the bleachers and they immediately sat down.

"Wow!" Ino smiled excitedly, "I can't wait to see this!"

Hinata chuckled to herself at her friend's excitement, reminding her of Naruto's constant cheeriness.

"Oh, by the way, how did the date go?"

Sakura turned to look at Temari, who raised her brows suggestively, smirking.

"Uh-" Sakura blushed a bit at the look her friend gave her. "It was okay. I mean, we spoke a bit and we had a smoothie together. He even paid for mine," Sakura answered, trying to offer her brightest smile.

"Wow," Temari sighed. "That must have been lovely. Though, I can't imagine the Uchiha being such a gentleman!"

Ino glanced at Sakura out of the corner of her eye. She knew Sakura wanted to tell her friends about what had happened, but she was trying to do it in a way that wouldn't worry them. Sakura didn't want them to blame Sasuke for the fight that they'd had.

Sakura nodded, the smile still gracing her lips, "Yeah, but something did happen. We kind of fou-"

"Lady Hinata."

Sakura was interrupted by Hyuuga Neji, the prodigy of the Hyuuga Household. Hinata was always shy around him and Sakura watched as the Hyuuga heiress bowed her head at her cousin. Although Neji and Hinata didn't get along too well, it was very obvious that they respected each other. Sakura wasn't too sure about what had happened between them or why they weren't as close as cousins should be, but she could always see that Hinata almost admired him. The pinkette had never asked Hinata about her relationship with Neji, because she didn't want to make the girl uncomfortable. But Sakura didn't mind not knowing. She could tell Neji and Hinata had a complicated past, but now they've sorted it out, and they could act like a family with each other.

Neji asked to speak to Hinata in private and so she apologised and followed the brunette to stand a few feet away.

"Wonder what that's about." Temari said, looking over at the two who had just left.

Ino shrugged, "Probably some family matter. I'm sure it's nothing."

Sakura nodded. Ino was probably right. They seemed to be having a neutral conversation. She could see that Hinata wasn't receiving any bad news. _That's good._

"So what was it you were saying?" Temari asked, smiling at Sakura.

Sakura smiled and shook her head, "Its nothing. The game's about to start," she said, gesturing excitedly toward the court.

"Yes!" Temari cheered, "I can't wait to watch Tenten play!"

"I honestly can't believe they'd let a girl play," Ino commented, more to herself.

"Well," Sakura chuckled, "We all know how determined Lee is!"

The other two nodded, "Yep!"

"I feel sorry for Tenten," Temari said, contemplatively, "This is going to be a tough match."

"Nah! She can handle this!" Ino said, smiling proudly. "Go team!"

Just then, Hinata came back from her talk with Neji. "So what did I miss?" she asked, making her way back to her spot on the bleachers.

"Nothing much," Temari said. "What was up with Neji?"

Hinata merely shrugged, "Just family matters. It doesn't really concern me, though."

The girls nodded and looked back to the game.

"I can see Tenten!" Sakura pointed excitedly at her friend sitting on the side-lines. "She looks like a real basketball player in that team getup!"

Temari waved at the brunette, "I hope she gets the chance to play!" she said, laughing at Tenten's barely visible scowl. She obviously wanted to be in the game.

"Oh, look!" Ino pointed, "There's Sasuke!"

"Ooh!" Temari smirked at Sakura, "Doesn't he look so 'beautiful!?'" She asked, imitating the Uchiha's fangirls. The group of friends laughed and Sakura couldn't help but laugh with them.

And glancing at Sasuke now, watching him playing basketball, she also couldn't hep but to think that he was, indeed, beautiful.

* * *

'I knew our boys could handle them!" Ino yelled, jumping up and down as she and her friends made their way down the bleachers. "Did you see how much we got the other team sweating!?"

"Let's face it," Tenten said, after running up to her group of friends, "They didn't stand a chance when I got on that court!" The girls laughed at their friend's arrogant comment.

"You were very good," Hinata said softly, making Tenten break out into a wide smile.

Temari rolled her eyes, "I get the feeling that the only reason Shikamaru got his butt kicked was because he was too lazy to keep playing. Otherwise Tenten might not actually have had the chance to play."

Sakura heard Ino and the other girls snicker at Temari's comment, but they quickly quietened down when they saw Shikamaru approaching them.

Temari smirked at the genius, "I saw you got your butt kicked in that game," she jeered, earning an annoyed sigh from the Nara.

"Whatever," he sighed, "it was becoming too troublesome."

This caused the sand-nin to roll her eyes, "Of course it was. What do you want?"

Shikamaru shook his head, "You're so impatient," he mumbled to himself.

"What was that?!" Temari asked, immediately raising her voice and stepping closer to Shikamaru. Her eyes were narrowed and she looked ready to fight.

"Geez," Shikamaru waved her off, "I just wanted to tell you the next match will be on Wednesday and Gai-sensei wants you to play."

At this, Temari only stared at him. YES! She was going to get a chance to show her lazy coach that she was better than him! Shikamaru always seemed to think women were weaker and inferior. But now, Temari would show him! She couldn't wait for Wednesday! He was going to watch her defeat the other team!

Temari was visibly brimming with excitement. She couldn't wait! "Just you see," she began, smirking arrogantly at the Nara, "I'm going to wipe out the opposing team! Just you wait!" And with that, she walked on ahead and didn't even care when Shikamaru muttered his all-too-famous catchphrase.

"Wow," Ino said, catching up with her friend, "Is it just me or did you just get really competitive back there?"

Hinata nodded nervously and Sakura looked questioningly at Temari, who only shrugged, "he doesn't believe I'm fit enough for the team. But now I'll show him!"

Sakura shook her head amusedly, "You two are like polar opposites. He's extremely lazy and you're extremely… Temari."

The other girls giggled and then Ino suddenly got an idea, "Oh my gosh! You two would make such an adorable couple!"

At this, however, Temari stopped dead in her tracks and glared at her blonde friend, "For the record, Ino, I don't like him."

"Sure you do!" Ino cooed.

Temari only glared at her friend and continued walking ahead. "Whatever, Ino! You're crazy!" she said light-heartedly, smiling at her friend.

Ino grinned back and they all walked to Sakura's dorm together.

* * *

After each girl had made themselves comfortable on Sakura's bed, Temari pulled out her phone and visibly scowled.

"What?" Ino asked, looking confused.

"We have training tomorrow," Temari said, looking at Tenten.

Tenten sighed, "On a Sunday?!"

Temari nodded, leaning back onto the headboard of the bed. She really didn't want to do basketball training on a Sunday. "Oh well," she sighed, "We can't do anything about it."

"Yeah…" Tenten groaned.

Ino and Sakura burst out laughing at their friend's lack of enthusiasm.

"It can't be that bad," Hinata smiled, but immediately stopped when she saw Temari begin to grin mischievously. "W-what?" the Hyuuga stuttered nervously.

"You were staring at Naruto the whole game," the sand-nin smirked, leaning closer towards Hinata and examining the blush sprouting from her cheeks.

"Seriously?!" Ino squealed, looking shocked at Hinata.

"N-no, th-that's not it!" Hinata tried to desperately fight her blush and protest, but her words had left her. This was so embarrassing!

Tenten perked up excitedly, "Hinata! If you like him, why don't you ask him out?"

At this, the Hyuuga quickly shied away and vigorously shook her head. "N-no, I-I couldn't!"

Sakura laughed at the scene playing out before her. "Maybe we need to do something to help Hinata out?" she suggested, grinning. She got up and fetched a drink from her fridge for each of her friends.

"Yes!" Tenten said, getting all excited. The group of friends laughed and completely ignored Hinata's protests.

"So why do you like him?" Temari asked, turning her attention back to Hinata.

The Heiress began to blush again but she couldn't help the small smile that played at her lips.

"Aww!" Ino cooed, "Hinata! You're so adorable!"

At this, Hinata immediately felt uncomfortable under the weight of all the attention, but she smiled back at her friends none the less.

"And what about you and Sasuke?" Temari asked, giving Sakura a smirk.

"What?" Sakura asked, feeling suddenly frazzled and nervous. "What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean," Temari assured her, "You didn't give us the details about the date. Did he kiss you? Did you two hold hands? Did you even make eye contact?!"

It didn't go unnoticed to Sakura how her heart made a small leap at the prospect of Sasuke kissing her. But she immediately shook the thought out of head. There wouldn't be any kissing. They'd fought. _Remember?_ "Well, uhh…" the pinkette began, "We kind of… argued…"

All the girls stopped what they were doing and stared at the pinkette.

"No way…" Temari trailed off, suddenly feeling uncomfortable as the atmosphere took a sudden downward spiral.

"O-oh, th-that's really… I'm sorry," Hinata offered comfortingly.

"Yeah, but it was all his fault!" Ino said, looking sour.

"Ino," Sakura smiled at her friend, who was trying to make her feel better. "It was my fault as much as it was his. We just… had a small argument."

Tenten's eyes suddenly grew wide, "Is that what you meant when you said you said you were dealing with "an awkward encounter" yesterday?"

Sakura smiled sheepishly and nodded. "But I mean, we resolved it and-"

"So does this mean no more dating him?" Temari asked, casually untying her hair and re-tying it.

"Probably not," Sakura answered honestly. "But that doesn't mean I'm going to give up! I mean, this might sound strange, but... I want to _see_ him…" Sakura closed her eyes, "You know, see him as a different person. I want to get to know him and find out if he has any other good qualities to him other than his looks." She opened her eyes to see her friends staring at her.

Hinata blushed, "If you want to get to know him, the real him, and if it's what you really want to do, then I believe you can." She smiled at Sakura, who retuned the gesture with a smile of her own.

Temari chuckled, "Imagine if my friend will be the one to get through to that jerk. His fangirls sure will get a shock!"

The other girls laughed, suddenly feeling happy again. "So, do you have a plan?" Ino asked, winking at her friend.

Sakura thought for a moment. She couldn't just turn around and ask for another date in calculus. And she didn't have the guts to email him. She sighed. "I know I'll think of something."

* * *

"WHAT!? WHAT DO YOU MEAN, 'NO'!?"

Sakura froze in her tracks. She heard a second voice murmuring, but it was too soft for her to make out what the person was saying.

She looked around frantically. What if she was caught? What if it was a teacher who was nearing her? What if it was a student who tattle-tailed!? Sakura started to panic. Who knew that today was going to be the day that she'd be punished for the first time in her life!? And for being out after curfew?!

"I THOUGHT YOU SAID YOU KNEW WHERE IT WAS!" The voice clearly sounded annoyed and as the person came closer, Sakura felt her fear wane. She narrowed her eyes in annoyance. She _knew_ that loud voice anywhere. It was Naruto.

She heard the murmur again and suddenly she didn't want to take any chances in case he was with a professor. Oh, how she regretted this decision!

Looking around, however, she couldn't find any place to hide. She was standing right in the middle of a long corridor. She sighed as she felt her heart beat faster at the approaching footsteps, but she was not prepared for the sight which met her eyes.

It was Sasuke. And he was with Naruto.

Sakura was shocked, and she could tell the two boys were just as stunned as she was. Naruto's blue eyes were huge and Sasuke wore his own expression of surprise.

"Uhh, hey, Sakura," Naruto began, nervously rubbing the back of his head. "What are you doing out of bed?"

"Well, I- umm…"

Naruto raised a quizzical blonde brow as he watched her fumble with her words. She was still in her pyjamas! This was so awkward! And with Sasuke staring at her-!

"Well," she began again, "I was going to Ino's dorm. I let her borrow my Calculus notebook, but I didn't realize I had homework to do in it. I completely forgot…"

Naruto nodded, smirking at her words, "and you thought that it was better to possibly get caught out after curfew than to just get a scolding for not doing your homework?"

At this, the pinkette began to blush, and she was so thankful that the only light that was coming in was the moonlight through the open curtain at the end of the corridor.

Sasuke scoffed. Sakura turned her hard eyes up to meet his cold ones. Naruto felt the tension in the air change. But before anything could happen, Sakura smiled at Naruto and continued down the hallway, not once looking back.

Once she was out of sight, Naruto turned to look at Sasuke who wouldn't meet his gaze. "What was that about?" the blonde asked.

Sasuke just shrugged his shoulders and continued to walk. He didn't feel like talking about Sakura- even if he couldn't stop thinking about her. Although, what she had done was extremely... unexpected. Never had a girl ever looked at him like that before. Was she... mad at him? And for what reason!? He had noticed her at the basketball courts that afternoon and he couldn't shake the disappointment he felt every time he remembered that she hadn't even said well done to him.

He frowned at his sudden emotions. _She's just an annoyance._

"YOU ALWAYS DO THIS!" Naruto yelled, catching up to Sasuke. "Why can't you ever pretend to be nice for once? At least make an effort when I'm trying to have a conversation with someone! I never make any friends when you're with me. You always turn everyone away and-"

Sasuke wasn't listening to the blonde. He had his own things to think about. About the way she looked at him with that cold glare. He wondered what he'd done to make her so mad. Although, she'd also made him mad, but for what reason; he wasn't sure.

Naruto looked over at his best friend. _He's brooding again..._ He'd have to talk to Sasuke about Sakura soon. The Uchiha seemed to be more distant ever since 'the date'... Naruto sighed. Sasuke clearly didn't know how to deal with relationships. And even though Naruto was probably not the best person to talk to about women, he defiantly knew more than Sasuke did. Yes. He would have to talk to him.

* * *

Sakura was back in her dorm. No teachers had found her, and even though Ino was as grumpy as a pig when the pinkette woke her, she was happy to have her Calculus book back.

But there was a constant reminder of the previous events of that night. _Sasuke_. He'd been so rude... Sakura couldn't help but glare at him. The way he acted... He acted like he didn't want anything between the two of them.

Sakura sighed as she thought this over. He was acting so cold and uninterested. It made the pinkette feel somewhat angry and... Hurt. Why was he so difficult?

Sakura made her way to her bed and sat down on it, crossing her legs. It was only after she had opened up her notebook that she realized- she hadn't even asked what _they_ were doing up! Could this night get anymore frustrating!?

* * *

 **A/N** : Okay, so that's the end of this chapter! I hope you all liked it and please leave a review to let me know what you think!

I'm pretty sure that by now you all know what the side pairings are, but I would just also like to hear your opinions on them. Please let me know if you like them and I need some help with who you want to see Ino end up with! It would be much appreciated!

I have the next chapter all planned out and I can GUARANTEE that there WILL be fluff! *w*

Thanks again for staying with me through this Fanfiction and I apologize for any grammatical errors.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N:** I am so sorry that this has been so late! I have no excuse for why I haven't updated. I promise I'll try to update sooner next time! But thank you so much to all those who reviewed and favourited and followed this story! It means everything to me!

This chapter has more of Sasuke's point of view in it because I felt like we were seeing more of Sakura's side of the story. I really hope you all enjoy this chapter, and again, I'm sorry it took this long. I was really unsure of how to write this chapter and what to do in future chapters, but I think I have it all sorted now! ;)

And onto chapter five!

I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Sasuke could tell that today was going to be an unusual Monday. Despite the fact that he had woken up later than usual, having slept in for the first time in years, something felt… wrong, almost. Or as if something bad was going to happen. He wasn't sure what it was, but the feeling wouldn't leave him.

His theory was only confirmed when he entered his first class for the day- Calculus- which he shared with Sakura. Upon arriving, he immediately noticed that the pinkette wasn't in the room. Either she was running late or she was actually absent, which was something that hardly ever happened. Not that he had been taking notice.

Regardless, he took his seat in his usual spot- behind Sakura's desk- and pulled out his notebook and some writing equipment. Sasuke recalled the last time he had spoken to Sakura; the night of the basketball match. She hadn't even congratulated him on his excellent play at the event. Not that he could blame her- they hadn't had the chance to speak until much later that evening. Besides, he might have been avoiding her for a reason he couldn't care enough to dwell upon at that moment.

The Uchiha leaned back in his seat, his brow furrowing slightly as he realised, for the second time that morning that the pinkette had somehow managed to occupy most of his thoughts. He'd noticed that, for some odd reason that he couldn't explain, he was constantly thinking about her. He didn't know what fascinated him so much about Haruno Sakura or why she had somehow managed to invade his thoughts every few minutes. It was such a sudden ritual that he would suddenly begin to think of her all the time.

Sasuke was secretly grateful when his best friend entered the room and began to make his way over to the Uchiha. He was grateful for the distraction, even though the day had barely started and Naruto's insistent chatter was already beginning to grow annoying. He cared for Naruto more than he wanted to admit, and it was times like these that he appreciated the blonde more than anyone else would. It reminded Sasuke that he had to look after his friendship with Naruto. The Uzumaki was there for him after all, and even though Sasuke always rolled his eyes at his friend's constant reminder of this, Sasuke thought he could ask Naruto for advice about this whole issue. Maybe the blonde knew something that the Uchiha didn't. Maybe he could help him out- if only a little. Glancing at Sakura's desk, the Uchiha figured it was worth a try.

But as the lecturer walked in, everyone fell silent, and Sasuke was momentarily distracted from his thoughts and the empty desk that sat before him.

This was unbearable! Sasuke sighed, annoyed. He couldn't concentrate! His mind just wouldn't focus on the Calculus sitting before him. All he could think about were those emerald green eyes, bubble-gum pink hair, milky skin and full pink lips.

Sasuke scowled. This was very annoying. All of sudden, he couldn't stop thinking about her. And it didn't help that his mind kept reminding him of her every detail. It was as if he could remember her in a most explicit way. Her lips, her hands, her - everything! She had become a lucid image. Haruno Sakura. _Sakura._

Sasuke clenched his fist tighter around his mechanical pencil.

Before, he wouldn't even have had a second thought about her. Sure, he always acknowledged how well she did, her scores always being one of the highest. But he had never actually _thought_ about her. And definitely not this much.

The Uchiha sat back in his chair, defeated. Why was he suddenly experiencing these feelings? What had happened? Did he suddenly think about her all the time because she was not present in the class and he suddenly _missed_ her? Or was it something a little more complicated than that? Was there a certain chemistry between the two of them that he hadn't even noticed before?

However possible that might be, it also wouldn't make any sense. Sasuke couldn't recall when he even began to experience a sudden attraction towards the pinkette. Although, he wasn't even sure if _attraction_ was the correct word, so to speak. Yes, he thought she definitely had a pleasing figure, and she was beautiful. But did just that constitute to him being _attracted_ to her? He didn't desire to kiss her. Although, he did sometimes feel the urge to run his fingers through her soft hair. But he didn't want to dwell on that.

How could he suddenly have feelings for her? It just didn't make any logical sense. They hadn't even really dated. All they did was meet at a park, order smoothies and argue. That didn't really seem like a romantic time out. Not to him, at least.

The Uchiha knew he was clever. He was at the top of his classes, and achieved exceptionally in everything he did. So why was this something that he simply couldn't understand? It frustrated him immensely, and annoyed him to the point of… he wasn't even sure. All he wanted was to see Sakura so that he would stop thinking about her. Maybe once he saw her again, a part of him would be satiated and he would stop thinking of her.

Hopefully his interest would fade away.

Maybe that was the correct word. _Interest…_ he was interested in her. Yes, that fit perfectly. It wasn't attraction- it couldn't be. He was simply _interested_.

Sasuke remembered back to when the pinkette had glared at him and the way she had simply just walked off. That had actually affected him more than it should have, and he wasn't sure why she had been so upset.

Although, he could be correct in assuming that he'd upset her when he'd scoffed at her the night before. That seemed to be the only possible reason. However, maybe he hadn't been acting very… friendly. But he couldn't even remember what he had been so annoyed about the previous night.

It was probably because she'd begun to blush and the Uchiha had felt a sudden urge to reach out and touch her. Or maybe it was because it was Naruto who had caused that reaction of hers. Or maybe it was just because seeing Sakura frustrated him and he didn't know what else to do.

He always felt like that when it came to feelings and emotions. He never knew what to do. And then he'd somehow upset her.

Sasuke shifted in his seat. She was so difficult.

* * *

By the time all the day's lectures had come to an end, Sasuke noticed that Ino was also missing from the class he shared with her. Initially, he'd found it strange that the two of them were both absent on the same day. But as he began to consider it more, he realised that it was a typical thing for best friends to do. They often bunked classes together to celebrate something or to go out.

Upon thinking that thought, however, Sasuke instantly removed the suggestion from his mind. Even though he didn't know Sakura very well, he knew she would never bunk a class. She was one of the top students, after all.

But this only left him repeating the question he had asked himself countless times throughout the day- where _was_ the pinkette?

It was an understatement to say that he was a little bit worried. Sasuke couldn't stop thinking about what might have happened. Was she in trouble? Sick?

Shaking his head, he sighed. He was probably overthinking her absence. He could not help but mentally scold himself for his unnecessary worrying. She would show up the next day, and he would only feel ashamed that he had worried so much.

The Uchiha grunted in frustration as he headed back towards his dorm, grateful that he didn't have basketball practice that day. All Sasuke wanted to do was get to his dorm and complete his work. He had hardly made any progress on his Calculus booklet, after all. His mind had been too preoccupied with other thoughts throughout the day.

He sighed for what felt like the hundredth time that day, hating these new thoughts that plagued him. All thoughts about _her_.

Sasuke stopped in his tracks when he saw Sakura's friend, Ino, turn the corner into the corridor he was walking down. She looked dazed- as if she had other things on her mind- and the Uchiha could see that her eyes were a little red. _She'd been crying…_

He didn't know what it was that made him do what he did next, but he did it nonetheless. He couldn't just let Ino walk past him without telling him what had happened. He needed to make sure that nothing was wrong. What if it had something to do with the pinkette? And although his pride screamed at him to not do anything, he just needed to make sure Sakura was okay. He stopped before the blonde, looking her in the eyes. "You weren't in class today."

Regretting it as soon as he had said it, it took every ounce of Sasuke's willpower to stay put and not walk off, pretending that he hadn't just done what he did. _Did I seriously just say that?!_ Sasuke mentally scolded himself. He only wanted to know about Sakura. He didn't care that Ino hadn't been in class today. He just wanted to know what had happened. Ino had obviously been with Sakura the whole day- and the fact that the blonde had been crying put him on edge. He didn't know why, but he hated thinking that something had gone wrong. He hated to think that something had happened to Sakura.

However, he couldn't even bring himself to ask about the pinkette directly. Usually, Sasuke had no problem asking for what he wanted, but for some reason he just couldn't ask about Sakura.

He just hoped Ino wouldn't realise what he truly meant by his statement. That would be embarrassing on too many levels. Firstly, it proved that he'd been looking out for Sakura during the day. Secondly, it proved that he cared about her; as much as Sasuke hated to admit that to himself. And thirdly, it showed how big a loser he was because he couldn't even bring himself to ask about Sakura directly!

Sasuke's best option was to just leave and pretend that he hadn't even spoken to the blonde.

But what was done was done. And he couldn't change that.

He knew what he'd said was a mistake when he saw Ino's reaction. Her initial look of confusion. Then of surprise. Then her eyes lit up and her lips featured a shameless flirty smirk. She'd seen the hidden meaning behind his words. She knew he wasn't asking about why _she_ wasn't at school. No. The blonde knew that he was only interested in hearing about Sakura. Of course she would see right through it.

And Sasuke was a fool to think otherwise.

"You're right. I wasn't." she began, a sickening sweetness dripping from her words. "How kind of you to notice. I hope you collected work for me." She wore a playful smile that made Sasuke want to punch her. She was doing this on purpose. She just wanted to draw out his response. She wanted him to _ask_ her about Sakura. He should have seen this coming.

But he wasn't sure why he didn't just leave. He could have just walked off, but instead, Sasuke decided to tolerate the blonde's form of harassment. It was probably because he wanted to hear about Sakura so badly. He needed to know that she was okay.

At his lack of response, Ino's eyes softened a bit as she shifted her gaze to the floor beneath her feet. She spoke softly. "Sakura had a rough night last night. I went to see her as soon as she had told me about…" she paused, "her grandmother passed away. She's not taking it too well. The two of them were really close. I spent the day with Sakura."

He didn't know what he'd been expecting. But he had not been expecting this. He felt the strange urge to rush to Sakura's dorm and comfort her. Even though he had no idea where her dorm was.

He clenched his fists and held back a surprisingly angry growl. _Sakura…_ he didn't like that she was suffering. He didn't know why, but he felt like he needed to be there for her. He wanted to comfort her and make her feel alright.

Even though he knew he wasn't the most comforting person, he still wanted to try. He knew what it was like to lose family- he'd experienced it all too well when he was still a child. The thought that she was going through the same thing made his chest feel tight and for some strange reason, he felt as if he shared her sadness. That when she was sad, he couldn't help but feel a sense of heartbrokenness too.

' _This is stupid,'_ he thought. His emotions were completely independent of Sakura's, right? So why did he feel so hurt just at the thought of how hurt she must be at that moment?

He was snapped out of his thoughts by the blonde standing before him. "She's gone to Tokyo for the funeral tonight. She will be back on Wednesday. Collect work for her, okay? She'll love the distraction." After a long moment, Ino continued on her way, walking past the speechless Uchiha.

"Oh!" Ino quickly shouted over her shoulder, "She's in Room 104. Drop her work off there! She'd hate it if she missed any important assignments!"

Sasuke could not help but stare at the spot she had previously occupied for a few moments, before he was finally able to move. He walked back to his dorm, almost in a daze. _Sakura- she-_ He could not believe that something this tragic had to happen to her. What had she done to deserve this? Sasuke had no idea what her home life was like or anything about her life before he had actually started taking notice of her, but he almost felt angry. Angry at the fact that she was suffering and frustrated because he hadn't had a clue and now he had no way of comforting her!

Collapsing onto his bed, he finally let Ino's information sink in.

She was in Tokyo.

She would be back on Wednesday.

He would wait.

* * *

The next day went by slowly. Sasuke noticed Sakura's empty seat in Calculus- and he had to clench his fists so hard, that he almost drew blood, to make sure that he wouldn't punch anything. He didn't know why he was so angry and frustrated. The last time he had seen her, Sakura was angry at him. He couldn't help but regret ever being such a jerk to her.

The Uchiha spent the rest of the day after classes practicing basketball. It was the only way he could effectively deal with his anger and frustration. Even after practice, Sasuke had stayed behind. And not surprisingly, Naruto stayed with him. They'd been practicing for a whole two hours, and quite frankly, Sasuke wasn't even sure why Naruto was still there. The Uchiha had expected his friend to have left by now.

But he hadn't. Naruto was still practicing with Sasuke, at times being too tired to play and he would just sit down on the courts and watch the raven head. But all without saying a word about why Sasuke was doing what he was doing. It was strange. Naruto remained silent and didn't ask any questions. It was unusual for the blonde to be so quiet. But Sasuke was grateful- even if he didn't want to admit it. He knew the Uzumaki could tell that Sasuke was angry and he was respecting his space. Sasuke appreciated that Naruto wasn't pressing him for questions.

"Hey, Sasuke! What's wrong?"

Well, at least the Uchiha _thought_ he was respecting his privacy. He sighed. Of course Naruto would become too curious to stay quiet for much longer. Sasuke chose to ignore his friend's question and continued to focus on his practice. The Uchiha knew Naruto would just continue to question him, but he didn't feel like answering right away.

Naruto sighed in frustration at his friend's lack of response, linking his fingers behind his head. He passed said friend a glare who unfortunately, didn't notice. Or he did but didn't show it. "Hey, aren't you going to tell me!?"

Sasuke stopped playing for a second just to pass Naruto an annoyed look. Naruto sighed again, standing up and joining his friend on the courts. They played for a bit longer before Naruto spoke softly, "So Sakura wasn't in class today." He lowered his eyes to Sasuke's hands which were clenched tighter around the ball, Naruto noticed.

Sasuke chose not to say anything and passed the ball to Naruto who smoothly dropped it into the basket. Sasuke was always hard to read. He never showed when he was sad or heartbroken. He only showed anger or annoyance. He liked to keep his emotions to himself, but he knew that that was not possible with Naruto.

Naruto had known him for almost his whole life. They'd met even before college and Sasuke knew that Naruto was different. The blonde always knew what was going on with the Uchiha, never failing at making it his job to help his friend out whenever he needed it. He could always tell what Sasuke was feeling and thinking. Sasuke would hand it to Naruto- he always knew how to cheer him up. He was used to Sasuke's behaviour and understood the hidden meanings behind most of his words and moods.

Sasuke knew that Naruto had noticed the way his hands had gripped the ball more tightly at the mention of Sakura. It was rare that Sasuke would show this much emotion, so something like that would never slip past the blonde. Thankfully, however, the younger of the two decided not to comment.

"Why is that?"

Naruto's next words snapped Sasuke out of his thoughts and for a moment, Sasuke didn't know what the blonde was asking him. When he remembered, he simply grunted. The reason for which Sakura was not at school was none of his business. And as much as Sasuke wanted to believe that he agreed with that thought, a part of him couldn't help but feel disappointed. He actually _wanted_ to tell Naruto why she hadn't been in class today. That she was actually not fine and that he couldn't do a thing about it! That he couldn't even help her and that he had been so rude to her in all of their encounters and how much he regretted it now.

Naruto was watching Sasuke, who suddenly appeared to be in his own world. Naruto took a step closer to Sasuke who hadn't moved at all and ducked his head to look into Sasuke's eyes. His dark pools were swimming with strong emotions of pain and confusion, and Naruto raised his arms to hold onto Sasuke's shoulders. The small movement seemed to snap Sasuke out of his thoughts and Naruto passed him a wide grin when he noticed the focus return to his friend's eyes.

Sasuke was sure he felt his eye twitch at his friend's smile and couldn't contain the sigh that slipped past his lips. "Sakura's…" He hesitated and mentally kicked himself. He wanted to talk to Naruto but he didn't know what to say. He opened his mouth but then closed it again.

"Sakura's…?" Naruto prodded, but didn't pry. He waited for Sasuke to gather his words. He knew the Uchiha wasn't good at sharing what was on his mind, and Naruto would respect that.

"She's not in a good place right now and… I don't know what I can do to help her." He couldn't bring himself to tell Naruto what had actually happened. He knew his friend would understand what he was trying to say, and he hated himself that he couldn't confide in the blonde.

"Oh," Naruto chuckled lightly, bringing his hands to take the ball from Sasuke's tightened grip around it. "That's easy, just take her out. Help her to forget whatever happened, you know?"

Sasuke watched as the blonde bounced the ball for a moment before scoring another hoop. He hadn't actually thought of that. Perhaps he should take her somewhere to help her to forget. However, as soon as he thought that, Sasuke already saw a flaw in that idea.

"I don't know if you remember, or not, but the last time we spoke, she was clearly angry with me." Sasuke commented, accepting the ball from Naruto, who had passed it back.

"So what? I'm sure she wasn't really upset. Probably just annoyed. I'm sure if I were in her shoes, I'd be just as annoyed." Naruto grinned, "Because you have such an attitude."

Sasuke glared at his blonde friend, barely resisting the urge to roll his eyes. What was that supposed to mean anyway?

"You just proved my point," Naruto laughed.

"Whatever," Sasuke grumbled. Why had he ever thought that speaking to Naruto would be a good idea? The blonde was always trying to make a joke and often had a tendency to tease the Uchiha. For what reason, Sasuke would never know.

"Hey!" Naruto called out, even though his friend was right beside him, "you're welcome!"

Sasuke could only grunt a sound of acknowledgement. He really did appreciate his friend's help more than he cared to admit. He was grateful to have a friend like Naruto could read him so well. He was never really good at expressing endearment, but seeing Naruto's big smile and impossibly hyperactive mood, the Uchiha couldn't help but let a small smile grace his lips. He would think about what Naruto had said.

And he would definitely set aside a day where the two of them could spend an evening together, eating greasy noodles which just so happened to be the blonde's favourite food.

* * *

Wednesday finally came around and Sasuke felt a strange nervousness at the thought of taking Sakura somewhere. Just the two of them- but not as a date.

He still had yet to decide if he was going to do it or not, however. He was worried that it was too soon to do something like this- that Sakura needed more time to mourn and that she wasn't ready to be in the company of others. If that was the case, he completely understood and he didn't want to seem like he was trying to force her to do something she didn't want to do.

Calculus was the last period of the day, and although Sasuke was glad to see Sakura, he couldn't help but notice how broken she looked, although she tried to mask it. She still continued working, taking notes- faster than usual, he noticed- and on the outside she seemed to be paying close attention to everything that the lecturer said. But even from behind, Sasuke didn't miss the rigidness of her actions. Her shoulders were tight and some of her movements seemed jerky, almost automatic and Sasuke knew just how must effort it must have taken her to keep up this appearance the whole day.

His hand resting on his knee tightened involuntarily. Sasuke _hated_ to see Sakura looking like this. She looked like her whole world was busy crumbling around her and it took most of Sasuke's self-control not to growl out in frustration.

Seeing her like this made him realize that for once, he had to do something. That he had to be there for her and not just act like the jerk he usually was. It was then decided. He would take Sakura out just to give her a few hours away from everything. He would ask her as soon as the class had ended.

Soon enough, the lesson was finally over and as much as Sasuke needed to talk to Sakura, he still felt a wave of desperation wash over him when he realized that he had no clue as to what he was going to say or what he was going to ask. He didn't know how she would take it. Did she even know that Ino had told him what had happened? What if she rejected him?

He would completely understand that, however. After something as traumatic as what had just happened to her, the last thing she was probably looking for was a good time out. She was clearly intent on drowning herself in work, judging by the way the only thing she had done the entire class was keep her eyes glued to the problems before her.

He sighed. And even if she wanted to get out a bit, there was no guarantee that she would go with _him._ She probably always thought he was such a jerk and now how would she react to his sudden kindness? Sasuke lightly shook his head in order to remove all negative thoughts from his mind. No, if he was going to do this, he'd have to do it confidently. He couldn't leave any room for doubt in his mind or hers.

Sasuke felt a tap on his shoulder and turned to see Naruto, who smiled and waved at him before exiting the room.

What was that about? Was it for good luck?

Dismissing his thoughts, Sasuke's grip around the stack of papers that he held tightened. He was holding the booklet which Sakura hadn't been present to collect, and he held the work from the day before which she had also missed. Calculus was the only class he shared with her, so that was the only work he had collected.

Deciding that it would be a good idea to use the work as an excuse to talk to her and to ask her if she wanted to do something after class, Sasuke reached forward across his desk in order to tap the pinkette in front of him to get her attention. But just as he reached forward and the last person exited the class, Sakura abruptly stood up, slung her bag over her shoulder and walked briskly out of the room.

Sasuke blinked once before retracting his hand and resting his head in his palms, letting out low growl. He kicked the front foot of his desk in mere annoyance and quickly got up to leave the room as well to make his way to practice.

He felt like such an idiot!

He met Naruto at the courts and just one look from him made his blonde friend almost shudder. Talk about angry. Naruto smiled at his friend, knowing full well that the reason for Sasuke's sudden glower was Sakura. He snickered as they stared the game.

* * *

Six o' clock he found himself standing by her door. Sakura's dorm. Bringing his closed fist to the dark wood of the door before him, Sasuke knocked and awaited her response. Clearly he couldn't wait until tomorrow. This had to be done _now_.

* * *

 **A/N:** So that was chapter five! And as you can imagine, the next chapter is going o be heavy with fluff! I'm looking forward to writing it and I hope you all enjoyed this chapter!

This chapter focused more on Sasuke and what he thinks. Sakura was hardly in here, but they'll both be in the next chapter!

This wasn't too eventful, but I thought it was an important chapter for crucial development.

Sorry for any errors or spelling mistakes and please let me know what you thought! Any comment is appreciated.

See you next update! ❤


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N:** Thank you so much to those who waited patiently for this update. I really appreciate all the support and it is great to know that you guys are enjoying this fic! I am grateful for everyone sticking through with this! It really motivates me!

And without further ado, Chapter six!

* * *

 _Six o' clock he found himself standing by her door. Sakura's dorm. Bringing his closed fist to the dark wood of the door before him, Sasuke knocked and awaited her response. Clearly he couldn't wait until tomorrow. This had to be done now._

Sakura glanced down at her wrist watch before wiping her eyes for what felt like the hundredth time that evening. Ino was early. They were only supposed to be meeting at seven so that they could have a moment to themselves to, as the blonde had put it, _chat and comfort one another_. So it surprised her that her friend would show up now. Of course, Sakura wanted to spend time with Ino, but her heart was just too heavy to be with company at that current moment. She was still mourning over what had happened, and although Sakura was grateful for all Ino's support, she couldn't bring herself to smile about the early visit. She was simply unprepared- she had been crying and wiping at her eyes all the while trying to complete her work that she had missed.

Setting her reading task aside and climbing off her bed, she made her way over to the door.

Come to think of it, however, she hadn't been getting much work done at all, anyway. Her mind was still occupied with other things and she was beginning to get a headache. Maybe spending some time with friends was in fact, a good idea. She missed Ino and her other friends, who had been extremely kind to her as well. She did not take it for granted that Hinata, Tenten and Temari were there for her, especially Ino, and Sakura was extremely thankful for their comforts and love.

She could work later. Tonight, however, she would accept that Ino had wanted to come. Sakura knew that her friend just wanted to check up on her, and she appreciated that.

Shaking her head, Sakura realised that she couldn't have cared less about her appearance at that point. Ino was her best friend- she wouldn't care if Sakura looked like a mess.

She paused for a moment before opening the door. Even though she didn't exactly feel like being in the company of another at that particular moment, she would try her best to appreciate what her best friend was doing for her.

The pinkette tentatively took hold of the doorknob and pulled the door open. But standing on the other side was definitely not Ino. It was Sasuke.

She couldn't hide her initial look of shock. Uchiha Sasuke was standing outside her dorm. This was the last thing she would ever have believed was going to happen.

"Here. This is the Calculus assignment you didn't get and this is the work you missed yesterday," Sasuke said, interrupting her thoughts. He held out the pack of papers to her, seeming to grow impatient when she still had not moved to take them.

Sakura noticed how Sasuke clenched his fist at his side, before deciding to step around her and inside her room, only to drop the papers on her desk. He appeared beside her once more, giving her a questioning look.

"Hi," the pinkette gave a shaky greeting after realising that she hadn't said anything yet. She looked into his dark orbs, feeling oddly happy that he had come to drop off her work, but also confused as to how he knew where her dorm room was. They were silent for a moment and as Sakura got over her initial shock, she looked around her to the papers on her desk, and as she turned to thank him, Sasuke caught her eye. It seemed as though he had been staring, and the pinkette quickly pulled her gaze away as she felt her face heat up. She mentally swore- was he still looking at her? And why was she getting flustered?! She never got flustered!

Sakura yelped in surprise when Sasuke took hold of her wrist. His grasp was warm and sent a pleasant shiver down her spine.

"Come on," he muttered, barely audible and Sakura couldn't help but move her feet to follow. She was not sure what was going on, and wasn't sure where she was being taken. Her mind conjured up images of him taking her to his dorm and- wait! Why was she thinking this?! She shook her head to rid herself of the thoughts. She blamed it on the headache. Or on the fact that she had been so sad that now her mind was thinking of ways to cheer her up.

However, Sasuke pulled her past all the other rooms and soon they were outside the building, but Sakura wasn't even paying attention to where she was being dragged to anymore. All she could think of was how her hand felt in his. Sakura was acutely aware of the fact that this was the first that they had ever touched one another. The first time she felt his skin on her own. She felt her heart jump at the thought and couldn't stop the swell of delight that washed over her. She didn't care where they were going and even though she hadn't felt like company before, she was happy to be in his.

She suddenly realised, however, that she wasn't even ready for an outing! All she was wearing was a tank top and a pair of tights- and quite frankly, she was sure her hair was a mess and her eyes were puffy from all the crying. But she didn't say anything or protest. All she could focus on was calming her erratically beating heart.

She was only vaguely surprised when they made their way over to what she assumed was Sasuke's car. Wordlessly, he held the door open for her and with her wrist still within his tight hold, he gently helped her to get into the car. Hesitantly, Sakura noticed, the Uchiha released his hold on her. It seemed as though he was suddenly afraid that she would run away when he let go.

It was not long before the sleek car took to the road, Sasuke's eyes trained on the now-darkening scene before him and Sakura took this moment to glance over at him with a curious gaze.

His hand on the steering wheel was tight and Sakura felt the sudden urge to run her own fingers across his knuckles, if only to let him know that he could relax. She briefly wondered where her sudden desire to initiate contact had come from, but dismissed the pressing question in favour of trying to wonder why Sasuke seemed so anxious. She wasn't sure what could be making him so nervous. Maybe it was the tense atmosphere around them or maybe it was because of this entire awkward- but sweet- turn of events. Maybe he had actually been nervous about going to her dorm or nervous about what to do next. Sakura almost smiled to herself. It was strange to imagine Sasuke nervous- with sweaty palms and the nervous looking around- and she found that she could not exactly picture it. He was so uptight, so regal, so perfect, so… Sasuke. With that in mind, she concluded that it could not possibly be nerves. She could only pin it to frustration. Frustration for what, she did not know… his mind was clearly elsewhere and she briefly contemplated asking him about his current thoughts. But she decided against it and chose to instead, take this time to simply think to herself.

This may have turned out to be a bad idea in itself as it left her thinking about her sudden loss and she discreetly wiped her eyes to rid them of the newly-shed tears that had betrayed her. She could not break down in front of him. Come to think of it, she wasn't even sure why she didn't want him to see her reduced to tears. It was no secret- especially to the Uchiha- that she had been crying excessively. Sakura figured that her reasoning was because Sasuke was clearly going out of his way to do something special for her, she couldn't let him see that she was in despair. She wanted time with him; no matter how difficult that was in her current state of mourning.

Looking out the window at the darkening streets and lit up homes, she began to think more about the man beside her. She recalled that she and Sasuke had last spoken a few days before. For some reason that she couldn't care to recall, they'd suddenly stopped speaking. She did not remember what had happened but she remembered how she felt- that whatever had happened between the two of them was over. To be quite honest, she still wasn't sure _what_ was happening between them. They definitely were no longer dating, but were they even friends? And what reason did the Uchiha have to suddenly whisk her away out on an evening adventure?

Sakura glanced at the man in question. He either didn't notice or he pretended not to. She wasn't sure which one it was. It was strange that she found herself in this situation. Sasuke was taking her somewhere- where, she didn't know- and now it was just the two of them. Alone. Gosh, that fluttering feeling just wouldn't leave!

* * *

They found themselves parked at the entrance to a huge expanse of grass. It seemed to be a sports field or a form of recreational ground that was bathed in a beautiful sunset. There was a small forest behind it- which, surprisingly, did not look creepy, only beautiful- and she wondered how she had never noticed this place before. She immediately felt at ease, being unable to tear her gaze away from the scene before her.

Sakura was shocked by an abrupt movement from Sasuke. Suddenly he was all around her. She could smell just him. Something warm brushed against her cheek, and by the time her senses cleared up from his scent, his coat was being pulled over her shoulders.

She caught his eye with a confused expression, noticing how his deep orbs were void of emotion. And before she could ask him why he had given her his coat, he began to speak, "you look cold." His voice was husky and deep. Sakura's eyelids fluttered closed for a brief moment, feeling a sudden chill go down her spine, though she doubted it was from the cold. The air around them was not biting and Sakura had not paid any thought to the weather. She wasn't really cold, so why had he…?

"Thanks," she breathed, immediately regretting how airy her voice sounded. His hands still held the collar of the coat in place, hovering just under her chin, so close that she could feel the warmth coming off them. She then took note of how cold her own fingers were.

Sakura looked into Sasuke's eyes and was surprised at how close he was. He was invading her senses- sight, touch, scent- and all she could do was close her eyes in a weak attempt to regain control over her emotions. But when she reopened them a split second later, his eyes quickly shifted back up to meet hers and after a moment he had his hands back in his pockets and was staring out over the field.

Sakura averted her gave to a nearby tree so as to distract her mind from thoughts about him. About Sasuke. She nervously brushed a stray piece of hair away from her eyes. _The tree really is beautiful in this light,_ Sakura thought then subconsciously added, _almost as beautiful as the man standing beside me._ She inwardly kicked herself at this thought. She was being silly.

"This is where I come to think."

She was surprised to hear his voice, but nodded, nonetheless. It was beautiful and she couldn't stop the happiness she felt knowing that he had just told her something as personal as this. Her head swam pleasantly as she mused over the thought that he had taken _her_ to _his_ special place. It was like an invitation to get to know him better. Sakura had always had the thought that she wanted to discover who he really was, and yet, he was just like anyone else who had their own place where they could think and be themselves. This is where Sasuke was at his most vulnerable. This place was a haven for him, and Sakura smiled at the thought that he was sharing it with her.

She understood why he had gotten so upset back when they had their first date. He thought she was renting him just for the fun of it. And in truth, even though it was a dare put in place by Ino, Sakura never thought of it as a joke. It was true that she had never liked Sasuke like how all the other girls in her college did, but Sakura did find herself wanting to be with him. Ino's dare was a challenge for Sakura- a challenge that she wanted to give a try because no matter how much she denied it, there was something about the Uchiha that attracted her. She felt that she, Haruno Sakura, understood Sasuke in a sense. She felt as though she had more insight as to whom he really was. Women who tried to get close to him because of his looks or his last name were always shoved to the side. What Sasuke wanted was someone who could look past all that. Someone who didn't care how he looked or care about his social status.

And Sakura understood this. All she wanted was for someone to love the real her. She didn't want somebody to love her simply because of her body or class. So in a sense, she felt she understood the Uchiha.

She also guessed that he saw her as just another girl, another person in his Calculus class. But deep down, the pinkette didn't want that.

Sakura had always wondered about the mystery that was Uchiha Sasuke. From that first date, she wanted to get to know the real Sasuke. She wanted to be able to understand him better. Why did he distance himself from most and why did he choose to push those that do care for him away?

It started out as her wishing to simply get to know the true him. Ino's dare was a way for Sakura to explore Sasuke Uchiha. It was strange. She and Sasuke had never spoken before their date. Now that one meeting had changed so many things between the two of them. And now. Sakura almost laughed at her foolishness. Being here with him, so close to him, a small realisation sparked in her. She had wondered after that first date if there would ever be any more. And although she knew the answer, she hadn't wanted to accept that her only way of getting to know him was lost. However, now she knew that that was not why she was upset. She was saddened because she knew that she would have no other reason to get close to him, to talk to him.

In truth, being here with him made her understand the painful truth- that she no longer just wanted to get to know the true him. She didn't just want to see the side of him that he never showed to anyone else, she wanted him to see the side of her that she didn't show anybody else too. She wanted a special bond with him that she had had never experienced with anyone else.

The cold, harsh Uchiha had somehow captured her heart and Sakura could barely stand the sadness she felt. She didn't just want to get to know him. She wanted to be closer to him. Not just because she was dared to- but because she wanted Sasuke…

She passed a quick glance over at him. The light highlighted his face in all the right places, making her take note of his strong features. He really was beautiful and Sakura couldn't stop the blush that painted her cheeks at the thought. She was acting like his fangirls- they only ever saw his beauty. She shook herself from the thought. Why was it so difficult to think about something other than him? _Maybe because he's right beside you?_ She told herself, even though Sakura knew that that was just wishful thinking. Her heart only ached after all when she acknowledged the real reason as to why he was constantly on her mind. She was falling for Uchiha Sasuke.

She wondered what he was thinking. He was being his usual quiet self, and although the silence wasn't awkward or uncomfortable in the least, the pinkette was beginning to grow restless. She drew a shaky breath as she thought of a way to perhaps start a conversation with him, which he either did not notice or chose to ignore. Sakura smiled to herself. It was amazing to think about how people feel better when in another person's company. Thinking about it, she had been shocked when she had opened her door to the dark-haired man instead of Ino. And now here they were and the pinkette suddenly realised how at ease she felt. Besides the fact that she felt a fluttering sensation in her stomach every so often or when she felt her heart rate speed up at his voice, she was calmer. She wasn't feeling as emotional as she had felt earlier. Being in his company had aided in relaxing her and she couldn't figure out why. Being around other people helped you to forget your own troubles and human contact is what sometimes brings people completely out of the darkness of sadness. Sakura acknowledged this and greatly began to appreciate what Sasuke had done for her in her time of need, even though it was completely unexpected of him.

 _Wait_ , Sakura thought. This whole thing _was_ unexpected of him. Since when would Sasuke take her away from everything in an obvious attempt to cheer her up? Because the last time she and Sasuke spoke, he made it very clear that he wasn't interested- in dating or being involved with her in any way. So why was he doing this?

Sakura ran her hand through her hair in a frustrated attempt to make sense of his sudden act of kindness. She appreciated it, yes, but _why!?_ Why did he have to toy with her emotions like this? Why had he made it so blatantly clear that she was just another classmate and yet take her somewhere in an attempt to calm her? Did he suddenly want to become friends? In which direction was their _relationship_ suddenly headed anyway?

The pinkette shook her head. This was ridiculous. One minute he was being stoic and distant and the next he was being nice and playing the hero. Who was Uchiha Sasuke, really, and what did he actually want? Sakura was done being confused and walking blindly into this friendship or relationship or whatever _he_ wanted to call it!

"Alright," Sakura began, "I'm ready to go back now. Thanks for… this." And with that she headed back to his car, trying to ignore the confused expression he allowed on his face at her clipped tone. Wordlessly, he followed her and unlocked the vehicle, even having the decency to attempt to open her door first to let her in. She had beat him to it, however, having already opened the door herself and sat down by the time he was still five paces away from her. She cheered triumphantly to herself. _Nice try, Uchiha!_

The ride back was awkward to say the least. They sat in a suffocating silence, Sasuke glancing at her out of the corner of his eye every so often. Sakura was just glad when it was over and was a little disappointed to find out that some of her anger and frustration had dissipated. Yes, she was still confused and angry, but her exhaustion and massive headache wouldn't allow her to further dwell on her previous emotions. All she needed now was a good night's rest.

And so with that, as Sasuke walked her quietly back to her dorm, Sakura could barely stop herself from dashing on ahead just to avoid any further awkward tension. Maybe she had acted a little brashly. Sasuke perhaps had just wanted to mend their relationship a little by making his bold attempt to cheer her up, but she could not care at that moment.

They reached her dorm not a moment too soon and it took every ounce of her being not to just close the door and rush back to bed. She was exhausted! "Thank you, Sasuke. Goodnight," she bowed and headed into her dorm before closing the door.

As the pinkette made her way to her bathroom she passed the clock on the wall and noted that it was late. Where had the time gone? She had completely forgotten about Ino, and sighed, hoping that the blonde wasn't out looking for her. She'd send her a message before bed to let her know that she had just needed some time alone. She would tell her friend the full story the following day, but Sakura wasn't in the mood to think about it now.

She flipped the switch for the bathroom light, illuminating the small, tiled room in a bright white glow. Turning her attention toward the mirror, Sakura got a small surprise when she saw her reflection. Besides the fact that her cheeks were still stained pink from crying, what caught most of her attention was the fact that she was still wearing Sasuke's coat!

Did he know that she still had it? (Because nothing went past Uchiha Sasuke.) And if he did, why hadn't he taken it back? Sakura suddenly felt very embarrassed that she hadn't even noticed that she still had it. Was her mind so distracted that she hadn't even remembered to give his coat back to him?

Touching the soft fabric of the coat, Sakura gave herself a small smile in the mirror. Maybe Sasuke really was just trying to be a real friend to her. Maybe, just maybe he was trying to make things better for her. To help her to understand that he was there for her and that regardless of _whatever_ was going on between them, he just wanted her know that he would help her if she ever needed it.

Sakura quickly removed the coat from around her shoulders and missed the warmth that left her body. She didn't pass by the opportunity to bring it closer to her face. It was so warm and it smelt just like him, bringing back thoughts about Sasuke.

Making her way over to the door, Sakura touched the doorknob to open it but stopped herself, realising that Sasuke would probably be in his dorm by now. She opened the door anyway and passed a quick glance down both sides of the passage. She couldn't see him and Sakura closed the door. She didn't think it was right to go and bother Sasuke now. She remembered his dorm room was in another building, anyway. She reasoned that he had probably known that she still had the item on and he would have asked for it back if he really cared. That being said, he probably wouldn't mind if she only gave it back to him the next day.

Sighing, Sakura hung the coat up on a nearby hook before she went to the bathroom to prepare herself for bed. She was grateful that she hadn't worn any makeup besides a light waterproof mascara, otherwise she would have looked a mess. After a giving her face a quick wash and after brushing her teeth, the pinkette deemed herself ready for bed, not forgetting to type a quick message to Ino.

The thick duvet brought comfort to Sakura and she was sure she would fall asleep in no time; her tired eyes already feeling heavy. But Sakura's mind could not help but replay the day's events. The crying, the warm coat and how her had tears stopped, and the drive back. She accounted everything that had happened, but her mind still would not let her think about anything else.

He gave her his coat. It replayed over in her mind again and again before Sakura began to realise something. After he gave it to her, she had noticed that he was closer to her. So much closer that she remembered that she could feel his warmth not only on her cheek but rather her whole body. And when she looked into those eyes of his, those deep eyes, he had been searching hers and at the time, it was all Sakura could do to not let her fantasies run away with her. But he had held onto the coat. Why hadn't he moved away sooner? And Sakura could just remember the fast beating of her heart and her initial confusion at his sudden boldness. When she had opened her eyes, she remembered seeing his quickly return to hers and she began to wonder where he had previously been looking? Could he have been looking at her lips? She just could not let the memory go, and now, thinking back on it, she couldn't shake the feeling that-

Sakura shot up in her bed, "Was he going to kiss me!?"

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 **A/N:** Thank you so much for reading! I really hope you guys all enjoyed this chapter and just to let you all know; I'm really excited to get the next one posted! Thank you so much to all those who reviewed and followed and favourited! You truly are my inspiration!

I apologise for any spelling and grammatical errors. Please let me know what you think of this chapter and hopefully we'll get some more talk in the next one!

See you all soon! ❤


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N:** I know, I know. It's been about six months since I last updated, but I just want to say that I still have not given up on this story! Every review from you guys inspires me to continue writing, and for your constant support, I just want to say thank you.

* * *

Sakura sighed. She was thinking about Sasuke again. Well, to put it more accurately, she was thinking about that night where he'd suddenly shown a different side to him; a more caring, compassionate side that she was sure only Naruto ever saw. And then there was the issue of that possible kiss. She still couldn't get that thought out of her mind- that Sasuke might have been going to… to kiss her.

' _But that's almost impossible,'_ she thought. Why would Sasuke, _Uchiha_ Sasuke, ever want to kiss _he_ r? It just didn't add up.

She placed her pencil down neatly next to her stack of notes and took to staring blankly at the screen of her laptop. She really needed to stop thinking about him. It probably wasn't a good idea for her mind to be occupied with anything other than the upcoming exams taking place in one week. Last week would simply just have to wait until after finals. She couldn't afford to lose her focus. Not now.

But the pinkette continued to just stare off into space. She needed a break. Running a hand through her hair, she got up from where she sat at her desk and made her way to her mini fridge, pulling out a soda and popping it open. But the events of that night wouldn't leave her. Smiling fondly at the memory of his hand clasping her wrist in a warm grip, she remembered she had acutely noticed that it was the first time he'd touched her. She acknowledged with slight embarrassment how she had so badly wanted to touch him then, to run her hand along his toned arms, maybe get the chance to feel the softness of his hair. Gosh, she was stupid. She had told herself before that she wouldn't get in too deep. The two of them weren't dating anymore, so why was she still thinking about him? There was nothing going on between them; so why did she feel like something was?

Sakura shook her head and placed her drink on her desk. Last week had brought so many new realisations about Sasuke. About how she felt about him. And now it was like they were stuck in a rut. She hadn't spoken to him for the entirety of the past week, and it seemed that any progress they had seemed to make was lost. With her realisation of having deeper feelings for the Uchiha, came the nervousness about what she was to him. Sakura sighed at how confusing everything had become.

Standing beside her chair, she scanned the room until her eyes landed on the coat that hung over the bathroom door. She still hadn't given it back. There'd been no time to. Or rather, she'd been too afraid to.

Besides, she and Sasuke had not even had time to talk during or after their classes and she certainly didn't want to lug his coat around all day. She didn't even want to be seen with it! What if people got the wrong idea? And his fangirls- she didn't even want to think about them.

A knock at her door brought her out of her thoughts. She automatically responded, "Come in," before sitting herself back down on her desk chair.

Ino stepped into her room in all her glory, clutching a bag of what seemed to be snacks and cool drinks. "He-ey," she smiled brightly, dragging out the word and making her way towards where Sakura sat.

"Hey Ino," Sakura smiled and stood to give her best friend a hug. "What are you doing here?"

The blonde woman shrugged, seating herself on the pinkette's bed, the action soon mimicked by her friend. "Just thought I'd hang with you for a bit. I think you should get a break from all that studying you've probably been doing."

Sakura smiled weakly, trying to ignore the slight guilt she felt at Ino's words. Yeah, right, busy studying her feelings for Sasuke!

"I brought some snacks," she paused to pull out a variety of health drinks and some low-calorie foods. Sakura laughed, her friend's typical antics not surprising her. "But," she continued as she rummaged through the bag some more, "I got this for you." She pulled out a slab of Sakura's favourite chocolate and the pinkette, laughing, thanked her friend.

They sat in silence for a moment, Sakura nibbling at her treat and Ino deciding what to eat first.

"You know," her blonde friend began excitedly. "The more I see Temari and Shikamaru together, the more tangible the chemistry between them is."

Sakura nodded. "Agreed. I swear, they argue all the time and it feels like any minute they're going to kiss."

"I know right! You'd think that all that fighting would drive a wedge between them, but it only seems to spur on their connection!"

"Yeah," Sakura laughed. "I don't know how Shikamaru can tolerate her temper. I mean, he's the one who's usually trying to restore balance between them."

Ino chuckled. "That's true."

A comfortable quiet enveloped the room in which the two best friends simply sat, enjoying one another's company.

"So," Ino broke the silence. "Anything happen between you and Sasuke lately?"

Sakura froze with the chocolate just before her lips, before bringing it back down. Her eyes widened. She should have known that Ino wanted to know what was going on between them, and now was her perfect opportunity to ask. "No," she shrugged, feigning nonchalance.

The blonde didn't buy it. She raised a perfect brow, fixing Sakura with an _'I don't believe you'_ look.

Sakura sighed. She really didn't want to get into talking about him now. She didn't even want to think about him. Anytime Sasuke was involved, the pinkette felt as though her sanity would leave her. It probably already had considering the fact that she had _fallen_ for the Uchiha!

Sakura stared into Ino's eyes, and did the only logical thing at that moment. "I- uh- need to get back to studying, so…" her words trailed off and before she knew it, Ino was already crossing her arms and shaking her head.

"Oh no, you don't. It's the weekend! Plus, you owe me some friend time since you _ditched_ me last week to go somewhere with Sasuke."

Sakura frowned, "how do you know about that?"

She rolled her eyes, explaining matter-of-factly, "I came here for that visit we spoke about, but then you were gone."

"No," Sakura shook her head. "The other thing. How did you know I was with Sasuke?"

Ino paused for a moment, being caught like a deer in headlights. "I…" she opened and closed her mouth but no words were being formed.

Sakura stared at her in question.

"I guess I just assumed he would-"

But she was cut off by Sakura. "And what would make you even consider the possibility that he would show up at my dorm only to take me out somewhere-"

"Was it a date?!" the blonde squealed excitedly, ignoring the serious look on her friend's face.

"No, it wasn't," Sakura was curt to respond. "Answer the question, Ino."

"Fine," the Yamanaka huffed and flopped back, her head landing on one of Sakura's pillows. "I might have been the person who told him to see you. Because you were sad and… and I guess I just thought that he would help to cheer you up. I didn't know what he could do to make you feel better, but I thought it was worth a shot. At least he wouldn't bombard you like I knew the rest of us would." She rambled on, going off on a tangent. "I wasn't sure if he was going to do anything at all," she paused to laugh, "but he was so worried that he was practically asking me if you were okay."

She missed the look of surprise that tried to make itself known on Sakura's features. ' _Sasuke? Worried?'_

"Anyway," the blonde continued. "I came here and saw that you weren't home. So I went back to my room, but on the way I saw Naruto and asked him if he'd seen Sasuke. He told me that he hadn't seen Sasuke since class and that he didn't know where he was." Ino couldn't keep the grin off her face. "So I knew you two went off somewhere."

Sakura took in all the information, the pieces finally coming together about how Sasuke had known where her room was, how he had known that she was experiencing heartache…

It was surprising that Ino had decided to interfere, but Sakura was secretly grateful. It should have annoyed her, but the revelations that evening had bought and the way that being with Sasuke had helped to keep her mind off of her loss, was because of her friend. Ino knew her so well. That having all her other friends come over and try to comfort her was just going to make her even more sad. What she'd actually needed was a way to break away from everyone completely, to leave her room and escape her thoughts, and Ino had realised that by getting Sasuke to pull her away was the best option in the moment. Sakura smiled slightly. Yes, Ino could be a true friend and it always surprised Sakura how well the blonde could see right through her, placing her own needs aside in order to help her pinkette friend.

"So," Ino began, interrupting her wandering mind, "what did happen, then?"

Sakura looked away, gathering her thoughts. She wasn't sure how accurate her interpretation of that day's events were. She had been turning them over in her mind, but still no solid explanation for anything had been found. She had let her emotions get the best of her, being an emotional wreck, and getting angry at him when Sasuke was possibly just trying to help. She also could have been wrong about the assumption she had made- that he'd wanted to kiss her. She'd realised her feelings for him and that he could never return them, turning her mind into a frustrated mess that she couldn't rely on.

So what to tell Ino? Did she tell her all of this? Only some of it? Should she tell her about the 'almost-kiss' as she'd begun to call it? Taking a deep breath, she realised that a burden shared between friends was better than one being carried alone.

"I think…" she trailed off, collecting some confidence. "That he wanted to kiss me…?" it sounded like a question, even to her own ears.

Ino wore a look of shock. Sakura didn't blame her- it was a hard-to-believe accusation on her part.

The pinkette just nodded, confirming the question that creased the blonde's brow. "Yeah…" anything was better than her friend's silence, even the squealing from earlier.

Ino tracked her gaze around the room, feeling dumbfounded but trying not to show it. Her blue orbs landed back on Sakura. "Really?" she breathed, barely even a whisper. "W-Why would you think that?"

"I don't know!" she felt confused, having asked herself that same question since that night. "He gave me his coat, thinking I was cold, and I wasn't really paying attention to what was happening, so I was surprised when I suddenly realised how close we were and how he was staring into my eyes." She spoke quickly to halt any interruptions from Ino, who just listened intently. "I closed them out of instinct, but when I opened them a second later, I saw his eyes move from my lips back up to my eyes. And in the next instant, he was back to his normal position alongside me with his hands in his pockets and-"

"Seriously?" Ino interjected, saying the word slowly as if it was one she had never heard of before.

Sakura could only nod, taking to brushing a strand of hair away from her face.

"Okay, so you're telling me that he might have wanted to _kiss_ you?" Ino still couldn't get over the news she had just been told.

Sakura sat with baited breath, waiting to hear what her friend would say next.

"Oh my gosh, Sakura!" Her friend practically screamed. "You are the luckiest girl _ever_!" she grabbed one of Sakura's pillows, squeezing it so tightly that Sakura found herself feeling grateful that she wasn't in its place.

"Why didn't you tell me sooner!? I would have been bursting with information like that by now!" Ino continued while Sakura just chuckled lightly at her friend's excitable nature.

"I mean, if you'd known he was going to kiss you, it must have been so _awkward_ giving the coat back to him," Ino laughed. "You must have felt so anxious talking to him! What did he say when you gave it back, anyway?"

At this, Sakura abruptly folded her hands into her lap, bringing her eyes down to follow the movement, her head hanging in a manner indicative of guilt. "About that," she started before glancing at the blonde briefly. "I haven't actually given it back to him yet."

"You what?!" Ino was beyond surprised. "Sakura, why not?! He might think you stole it, or worse; he could think that you're keeping it to obsess and perv over it!"

Sakura rolled her eyes, "He knows I'm not like that, Ino. Only you would keep someone's clothing to sleep with and memorise their scen-" Sakura was cut off by the plush pillow that had previously been crushed by Ino as it connected with her face.

"Okay, okay," she laughed, placing the pillow beside her.

Ino curtly folded her arms before her, huffing out a sigh, moving back to their earlier conversation "Well, I think you should give it back to him. Why the delay, anyway?"

Sakura stammered a bit. "I-I… I don't know. I never found the right time to give it back…"

"Well, Sakura my friend," the Yamanaka stuck a finger into the air excitedly, "there's no time like the present!"

Sakura pouted at Ino's words. Did she have to use a well-known saying? It always made things seem truer, and right now there really _was_ no better time than the present. Sighing, Sakura shifted into a kneeling position on her bed. Fixing her friend with a desperate look, Sakura asked the one question that she didn't want to hear the answer to, "Do I have to?"

Ino laughed at this. "Of course you do! I mean, what will you do with the coat if you don't? Trust me, it's better to get it over with before he starts to think you're weird for not giving it back sooner."

' _Too late for that. He probably already thinks I'm a psycho.'_

Sakura shrugged. She wouldn't actually keep it. She just wasn't sure if she was ready to speak to him. She would probably have just dropped it off outside his dorm, knocked and run away. Or give it to Naruto to give to Sasuke. But a face-to-face confrontation with the deluding Uchiha had not been on her list of options concerning the jacket.

After no answer from her friend, Ino jumped up and grabbed Sakura's wrist, trying desperately to tug her off the bed. "Come on, Sakura," Ino said cheerfully. "I've been waiting for something interesting to happen all week! Let's go give it to him now."

Why had she decided to tell Ino about this again?

Sakura groaned as she was easily pulled off the mattress. She was not in the mood for this. "But he's so confusing, Ino," Sakura said as a way to try and talk her friend out of this. "One minute he tells me to leave him alone and then the next, he's all nice."

"So what?" Ino asked, her smile getting bigger. "That could just mean that _he's_ confused."

Sakura fixed her friend with a frown, but Ino didn't see it, being too busy walking around the small room to get to the coat hanging on a hook by the entrance to her dorm room.

Sakura voiced her question, "What do you mean 'confused'?"

"You know," her blonde friend waved dismissively. "He's confused about how he feels so he _acts_ all confusing just to confuse you because he doesn't really know what he wants."

Sakura tilted her head to the side. Now _she_ was confused.

"Whatever," Ino laughed, the sound pulling Sakura's own lips into a smile. "Let's go give this back!"

Sakura made to protest even though she was already being pulled from her dorm and down the passageway. "But I don't even know where his room is-! What if he's busy studying? We have exams in a week-"

"Don't worry about any of that, Sakura," Ino laughed, but it came out sounding more exasperated rather than cheerful. Stopping before her friend, she held up a finger before the pinkette could get out another protest. "Trust me, you need to take risks sometimes and actually do something that _you_ want to do. You can't keep thinking of the implications of everything or predicting the worst that could happen." Her friend gave her an endearing smile, "you're smart Sakura. Don't let something like this cost you your confidence."

A moment passed, Ino's words sinking in, before Sakura nodded in agreement. "Okay, Ino." _Let's do this._

A few minutes later had them standing before a door that was coloured the same dark shade of varnished wood as all the other doors. The handle was the same as the other ten doors down and the height and width of the entryway was identical to every other in the building. And yet, for some reason, _she couldn't bring herself to knock! Why was this one in particular so daunting?!_

Sakura sighed. She didn't know why this was so hard! Glancing back at the blonde who peered at her from around the corner and giving her two thumbs up, Sakura only growled at her poor decision to follow through with this. What had she been thinking?!

The pinkette brought her fist up to the wood of door, fully intending to knock, when she couldn't help but pause. Gripping the coat tightly in her other hand, she closed her eyes, steeling her nerves, taking a breath.

 _It's just Sasuke…_

Somehow, that thought hadn't helped her any. She knew she needed to be strong for this, but for some reason, she was more nervous to simply knock on the door than what was probably normal. ' _I'd rather write an exam. Then at least I wouldn't be this nervous.'_

Was her heart supposed to be beating this fast?

Apparently, she'd been standing doing nothing too long for the blonde's liking. Because in the next instant, Ino had swiftly moved around her, knocked on the door in a loud and demanding way that was too confident for Sakura's liking, and slinked back behind the wall.

Being suddenly pulled from her reverie, Sakura couldn't help but to scowl at the blonde who hid around the corner, smiling smugly in return.

 _Why, Ino-Pig! Just wait until I get my hands on y-_

The click of a door unlocking halted her in her tracks.

 _Sakura?_

Sasuke raised a brow in question. What was she doing here? She stood before him with a light blush dusting her cheeks, a scowl giving way to a look of surprise as she whipped her head around to the additional presence standing before her. She had her hands fisted around a jacket he was sure would tear in her powerful grip.

His mind registered with delay, that it was _his_ coat that she was close to shredding.

He considered opening his mouth to say something but was saved the effort when Sakura gave one last scowl directed down the passage, before turning to face him and projected a supposed forced smile, probably in an attempt to conceal her previously displayed annoyance.

"Hi," Sakura pronounced through a tight-lipped smile. She held the coat out in front of her, extending it towards him.

Sasuke did not allow any emotion to show on his face as he took his coat from her outstretched hand. Truth be told, he was a little more than surprised with her sudden appearance outside his dorm. Sasuke was no stranger to Sakura's work ethic and tenacious personality and it was these traits that kept her on the same level as him, neither seeming to be able to fully surpass the other. The two were the best in all their classes and it was this that made Sasuke understand how important Sakura's studies were to her. So for her to be here now when their exams were looming around the corner was somewhat strange for Sasuke. Granted, she could be taking a break, but why decide to give him his coat back _now_ when she could have done so last week?

It could stem from the fact that she had still been upset from their last encounter… the thought made Sasuke want to frown (not that he did because he's _Sasuke_ ) as he still had not been able to detect the exact reason for Sakura's unplanned, abrupt departure. She had been very adamant about leaving him behind her to avoid further conversation and this thought had left the Uchiha baffled. The only logical reason he could think of was that she had been about to open the floodgates and didn't want him to be around her when she did. It was a plausible option and fit her actions perfectly.

If she had been about to mourn and wanted to be left alone, Sasuke understood that. He had spent some time entertaining the thought that maybe she had been upset, but he simply couldn't figure out any reason why that would be the case. For the Haruno to act brashly purely because of her sudden anger seemed unlikely. However, he did not completely discard this reasoning, purely because she had already been in an emotional state and could have felt varying levels of emotions during that time.

That being said, he had wondered when the two of them would speak again, but had made no move on his part to initiate any conversation. He figured that with time their paths would cross again once she had sorted out whatever she'd needed to, but that didn't mean that he had stopped thinking about her. The opposite was true, to the point where Sasuke had begun to grow frustrated with having her constantly in his thoughts.

He had only hoped that he had made the right choice in doing what he did the previous week. But seeing her now confirmed that he had helped her in some way- she seemed happier and perhaps more relaxed. The image of her tear-stained face came to mind, and even though he surprised himself by finding her to be no less beautiful, that sadness was one thing he didn't want to see clouding her feature again.

He glanced down the passage, intent on finding out why Sakura had been scowling in that direction earlier. If it was up to him to guess, he would say that someone had forced her to approach him _now_ ; that person arguably being Ino. The blonde was known for her interferences in other people's lives. Or at least, that was his own opinion.

Sasuke sometimes pondered how the two had become friends. Sakura was intelligent and conservative, but Ino was loud and flashy. She was not the most annoying girl he had met, but she still had an excitable nature about her that he did not understand. Either way, that didn't really matter so long as the pinkette and blonde had each other.

"Hey, Sasuke! Who is it?" Speaking of friends…

A surprised look crossed Sakura's face and she lifted her gaze over his shoulder to pear into Sasuke's room. The Uchiha frowned slightly at hearing the voice belonging to his annoying friend interrupt his thoughts.

Said blonde hurried to the door where Sakura stared at him, wide-eyed. She probably hadn't seen him in his room before now.

Naruto seemed surprised to see her standing there, but greeted her friendlily regardless, "Heya, Sakura!"

A smile graced Sakura's lips and she returned the greeting warmly.

"Have you finished your Economics chapter?" Sasuke interrupted their little exchange in favour of interrogating his friend on how well he obeyed Sasuke's previous instruction.

Naruto pouted, "Geeze, Sasuke. Don't have to be such a buzz-kill."

Sasuke almost rolled his eyes. "You asked to study with me and I ask that you don't hold me back or get in my way. Go finish the chapter so that we can move on."

Sasuke heard Sakura release a short breath in what could have been an amused sound. She confirmed Sasuke's suspicions when she said, "I hope that you guys don't banter while you study too, or that could be more distracting than it is productive."

Naruto chuckled, adopting a somewhat sheepish expression, "We don't always argue. Just when Sasuke's being an a-"

"Or when you're being an idiot," Sasuke interjected, folding his arms across his chest in a dismissive fashion.

Sakura brought her hand to her lips to stifle the laughter that threatened to bubble out. "Well, I guess you two had better get back to it then."

Sasuke inclined his head in a slight nod, letting a scowl settle across his features when Naruto grumbled about how he was friends with a slave driver.

Sakura laughed this time, drawing Sasuke's attention to the attractive sound. He wanted to hear it again, and was disappointed when she shook her head bemusedly in order to dispel the last of her giggles. He felt a smile almost touch his lips but stifled it with the tightening of his jaw. Either he was going crazy, or there was actually a girl whose laughter he found beautiful. It was a mind-blowing discovery- the Uchiha hated giggling and crooning- and yet, here he was, certain that that sound would never leave his memory. Closing his eyes, he inhaled a steady breath to clear his thoughts.

When he opened them, the pull was instant. Her bright orbs searched for his dark ones and found them almost instinctively. It was electrifying- the warmth and adoration reflecting in them almost caught him off guard. But he steeled his muscles against the sudden draw towards her, remaining decidedly still.

There was a shift in the atmosphere and she might have felt it too, because she ducked her gaze as she fought a blush that threatened to make itself known. "A-anyway… I'll see you guys around. Good luck with the studying."

Naruto pouted jokingly at being left alone with the Uchiha, before a wide grin took over his features. "Yeah, Sakura. See you round," and with that he waved her off, his loud and enthusiastic mannerisms making up for Sasuke's lack of response.

Closing the door behind them, Sasuke hefted his coat over his shoulder as he made his way over to his bed. Setting it down he noticed with some twisted disappointment that it didn't smell like her, but rather as though it had been sent to the dry cleaners.

What was he thinking? When had he become such an idiot?

Shaking his head with a sigh, Sasuke turned back to the blonde currently occupying his desk. He was surprised, however, when he was met with those bright, imploring eyes he wanted to avoid. He hated when Naruto gave him that look.

"What?" he questioned, quirking a brow at the blonde's pensive silence.

Naruto shrugged, "Nothing. Just thinking."

"No kidding."

There was another moment of silence in which Sasuke made his was over to his desk. He hated these silences with Naruto. They were never comfortable, being instead stifling and suffocating as those cerulean irises tracked his every movement.

 _Say something!_

As if reading his thoughts, Naruto opened his mouth to speak, spinning in the seat upon which he sat. "So, Sakura, huh?"

Sasuke ignored what his was implying and went on the defensive. "I don't know what you're talking about."

He was ignored.

"Why'd she have your coat?" he nodded in the direction of the item of clothing that lay neatly on the bed.

The Uchiha shrugged, knowing that his dismissive attitude was probably irking the blonde. "I was being kind."

Naruto grinned from ear to ear. "Yeah right, kind of romantic."

Sasuke's only answer was the pulling of his mouth into a tight-lipped scowl.

The blonde cocked his head to one side. "I never did ask about what happened between you two last week. Did you help her out?"

Sasuke relaxed his tense muscles. At least the conversation was heading into more acceptable territory. He nodded, busying himself with trying to find a pencil on the crowded desk. "I took her to that field close by. She seemed to relax after a bit." ' _Yeah, until she totally lashed out at you and ignored you for a week.'_

Naruto nodded, eyeing him suspiciously. "Are you two dating?"

Sasuke braced his features, giving nothing away.

"What? Are you having sex?"

The Uchiha visibly blanched.

"Okay, okay," Naruto laughed, waving his hands before him in a sign of surrender.

Sasuke grunted, knowing full well that he had yet to hear the end of Naruto's prying.

However, the blonde did that thing that surprised him again. He didn't press him further for any information and he didn't mention any more on the topic. Instead, he flipped his module open, resuming the task that had previously occupied him.

* * *

 **A/N:** thank you for reading and sticking through this with me. I value your feedback and support.


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